Gulls Soar Over Nichols in OT Thriller

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott field hockey team played host to Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) opponent Nichols College on Saturday afternoon. Despite being down by two goals at the half the Gulls rallied together and came back to win with a final of 3-2OT. Junior Mackenzie Hurst (Gilford, N.H.) scored the winning goal for the Blue and Green off a penalty stroke three minutes into extra time. The Gulls now stand at 4-3 (1-0 CCC), while their opponent falls to 1-6 (1-1 CCC).

The first frame was a battle for both sides, but Nichols took control by scoring two goals. The Bison took 12 shots on the half, that was led by junior Avery Orszulak (Springfield, Mass.) who tallied 12. Orszulak forced a lot of quick transition plays that led the Bison in front of the Gulls in the offensive end. At 18:00 junior Kaylee McNamara (Watertown, Mass.) received a pass from Orszulak in front of the net and was able to slip it past sophomore goalkeeper Rose Bradley (Pottstown, Pa.) to take the 1-0 lead. The Bison would not let their offensive pressure end there when three minutes later junior Jenn Townsend (Wethersfield, Conn.) caught the ball of an interception from Bradley and banked it into the left corner to increase the lead to two. 

The Gulls worked to try and transition but they were only able to rip off five shots. Defensively the Blue and Green were strong but could not overcome the offensive transition that Nichols showed. The frame ended as the Bison led 2-0.

Coach Jodi Cipolla must have given the Blue and Green a major boost at halftime because the Gulls came out soaring in the second frame. They were able to stop the transition play by Nichols and create some offensive pressure of their own forcing 11 shots. Junior Emily Sawchuck (Cumberland, Maine) was fearless on the right side moving the ball up the field to create plays in the circle. As the time was ticking down, at 51:22 Sawchuck was hungry to get Endicott on the board as she dribbled her way through three defenders and lifted the ball high over junior goalkeeper, Molly Melanson's (Simsbury, Conn.) head to the top left corner to get the Gulls back in the game.

The goal created a new energy for the Blue and Green, but it also gave the Bison the will to find the back of the net. Nichols took 17 shots in the half and forced 12 corners. The corners were where the Bison executed and created a cluster in front of the net to try and score. The Gulls defense, led by Senior Emily O'Halloran (Cheshire, Conn.) who tallied a defensive save, was fierce on the back line and never let up to keep the Bison from scoring.

Nine minutes after Sawchuck cut down the lead to one, junior Kathryn Walker (Middlebury, Conn.) found herself on a breakaway opportunity. She dribbled the ball in from the left side and wound up to take a shot at goal and buried it into the back of the net to tie up the game. Regulation was coming to a close and neither side could find the back of the net to take the win. The frame ended at a stalemate and forced overtime.

Endicott came out strong controlling most of the three minutes of extra time. Sawchuck had a couple of opportunities one on one but the Bison defenders shut her down. On an offensive transition Hurst found herself alone with two defenders and a goalkeeper blocking her way to the goal. She dribbled in and took a shot that was stopped on the goal line by a defenders foot which caused a penalty stoke opportunity for the Blue and Green. Coach Jodi Cipolla sent Hurst to the stroke mark to give the Gulls the win. She lifted the ball to the left corner to make it past Melanson to give Endicott the victory.

Junior Meghan Leary (Hampton Falls, N.H.) was composed in the midfield and created a lot of opportunities for the Gulls offensively and shut down a lot of plays for Nichols on the defensive end. Senior Beth Farr (Rindge, N.H.) came in off the bench and created a lot of energy for Endicott forced some opportunities in the circle. Overall the Blue and Green had a great team effort and rallied together to come back from a two goal deficit and come out on top.

This afternoon marked the first conference game for Endicott who now stands at 1-0 and Nichols moves to 1-1 in the CCC. The Gulls will look ahead to Tuesday September 24^th where they will face CCC opponent Roger Williams. The Bison will also play on Tuesday where they will face Salve Regina for a CCC matchup. Both games are set to kick off at 7:00 PM.