Assumption Hands No. 6 Merrimack 2-1 Upset Setback
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Down by a goal late in the second half, the No. 6 Merrimack field hockey team threw everything it had at Assumption, but the Warriors would ultimately fall, 2-1, in upset fashion as the visiting Greyhounds managed to hang on to hand the home side a stunning loss on Wednesday night at Martone-Mejail Field.
After winning seven straight games since what was its only setback of the season previously, the Warriors fall to 7-2 on the year with a 2-1 mark in Northeast-10 Conference action. The Greyhounds, meanwhile, move to 5-5-1 with a perfect 4-0 record in league play.
The Greyhounds tacked on goals in both the first and second half to build a two-score advantage before the Warriors finally got on the board with less than 20 minutes to play. But despite holding a 19-4 shot attempt advantage in the second half, Merrimack would be denied the rest of the way from finding the equalizer, falling at home for the first time this fall.
Senior forward April Daugherty (Wakefield, R.I.) recorded her eighth goal of the season, but Greyhound goalkeeper Lauren Neilan held strong in net with seven saves to pick up the win.
Senior goalkeeper Kerri Bergquist (Mashpee, Mass.) turned aside four shots in a losing effort, falling to 7-2 on the season.
Leading scorer Maria Beatrice put the visitors on the board at 12:06 of the first half, deflecting a shot from Kiley Colucci over Bergquist and into the cage to give the Greyhounds an early 1-0 advantage.
That lead would hold through the remainder of the first half, as both Bergquist and Neilan kept the respective offenses in check until the break.
Five minutes into the second half, Assumption doubled the lead with a strike from Paige Anderson on a feed from Colucci, taking a pass across the circle and burying a shot from the left side to make it 2-0.
Finally, Daugherty would force a turnover and eventually notch an unassisted tally to make it a one-goal game at 50:11, but that would be the closest the home side would get the rest of the way.
"Kudos to Assumption, they played an excellent game," head coach Anne Rounce said afterward "It's unfortunate that we didn't show up today, we didn't want it as much as [Assumption] did. We need to learn play together as a unit, because we can't just be a second-half team. We've been a second-half team all year and it caught up to us today, but again, hats off to Assumption."
In total, the Warriors held a 29-8 advantage in shot attempts but only placed eight shots on net. Merrimack also could not capitalize on any of its 17 penalty corners compared to only five for the Greyhounds.
Next up, the Warriors wrap up September with a non-conference tilt at Stonehill on Saturday, Sept. 29. First whistle from Easton, Mass., is set for 12 p.m.
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