The field hockey team (6-11, 1-6 Ivy) ended the year with a loss, dropping its final game of the season to Yale (8-9, 4-3) in a trip to New Haven Saturday.
Brown entered the game having dropped three of its last four conference contests.
“The Yale game put a lot of pressure on us for an Ivy win,” said Haley Alvarez ’15, a Herald sports staff writer. “We only beat Harvard, and Yale is one of our toughest rivals.”
But the Bulldogs marked their territory as soon as the first whistle blew. In a scenario reminiscent of previous games this season, The Bears found themselves on the receiving end of an offensive assault. One of Yale’s several shots found the net four minutes in, lifting the hosts to an early lead.
The Bears managed to regain composure and rallied to reverse the game’s course. Meghan O’Donnell ’15, the team’s leading scorer, broke through the Bulldogs’ defense in the 10th minute to record an unassisted goal. Following O’Donnell’s equalizer, the two squads remained scoreless through the end of the first half.
The second half unfolded much like the first. Yale continued to hammer Brown’s defense, while the Bears struggled to mount a counterattack. By the end of the match, Bruno had recorded only seven shots to Yale’s 33 — a figure that illustrated the Bulldogs’ offensive advantage.
Despite the discrepancy, Shannon McSweeney ’15 more than held her own at net for the Bears, saving 20 of the 22 shots the Bulldogs launched on goal. McSweeney’s showing kept her at the head of the Ivy League in the saves category.
With only six minutes remaining in the second half, Yale evaded Brown’s defense and netted a second goal, giving the Bulldogs the lead once more.
In a last-ditch attempt to score, Head Coach Jill Reeve opted to pull McSweeney in favor of an extra attacker, but the effort was ultimately unsuccessful.
“I think it was a good decision on her part,” Alvarez said.
The Bulldogs left the field triumphant, 2-1, while the Bears ended the season in defeat, hoping for a better outcome next season.
“We’re just going to improve every year,” Alvarez said. “Team chemistry will probably continue to be our strong point for next year.”
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