The Fairfield University field hockey team began a three-game Northeast Conference NEC run starting on Thursday, Oct. 24 at Wagner College (1-10, 0-4 NEC) in Staten Island, NY and then moving on to Merrimack College (2-13, 1-4 NEC) in Durham, NH on Saturday, Oct. 26. The away competitions were decided 3-1 in favor of the Stags, but they look on to finish conference play for the season on University Field in Fairfield, CT against Long Island University (7-7, 4-1 NEC). The two victories improved Fairfield’s overall record to 14-2 while they remain untouchable 5-0 in the NEC.
On Thursday afternoon in New York, all of the action happened in the fourth quarter of play. Danielle Profita ‘21 was first to score at 45 minutes and 42 seconds, registering her seventh goal of the season. She leads the team in scoring, and the helper was credited to Luzi Persiehl ‘22. This would be her first of two in the matchup against Wagner.
Later on, with 50 minutes and nine seconds on the clock, she racked up another assist when she shot the ball in sophomore midfielder Malen Iglesias’s direction who took advantage of her position in front of goal and deflected it into the net.
To finish up the trio of scoring, Ymke Huisman ‘22 notched her first goal as a Stag with three minutes left in the match. She stole the ball from an opposing defender and delivered a lucky chance from the left circle to finish up the scoring opportunity for Fairfield, 3-0.
Wagner’s Hannah Meyer managed to tally a point for Wagner’s side of the scoring sheet, but they could not make up the difference that Fairfield amassed. Although of the home-team’s 15 shots, nine were on target, Fairfield’s five on goal out of 11 were executed with more precision and ultimately turned out successfully.
In New Hampshire against Merrimack, the Stags matched their highest win-streak with a seventh consecutive triumph for the second time this season. The 3-1 decision kept Fairfield sitting comfortably in a 24th place ranking in the nation.
Merrimack jumped at an offensive chance and posted a goal early in the game, six minutes into the first period.
Senior Stag Emily Halderson scored the equalizer more than halfway into the second, at 22 minutes and 25 seconds unassisted.
The third quarter was controlled by Fairfield’s Kelly Buckley ‘21 who was responsible for Fairfield’s surge. For the third time this week, Persiehl’s pass set Buckley up to put one past the goalkeeper, and set Fairfield ahead 2-1. Once more, she rounded out her scoring chances with another rocket, this time unassisted, at 41 minutes and 42 seconds with a period of play in regulation time left.
Merrimack was able to fend off five shots from Fairfield in the last quarter, but failed to gain the upper hand. The results were 3-1 in Fairfield’s favor. On Friday, Nov. 3 they will wrap up NEC play at home before taking on the Drexel University Dragons (4-12) in the last regular-season game of the season.
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