What a difference 12 months makes. At this time last year, the Hopkins field hockey team was headed home empty-handed with a 1-2 record after dropping a 5-0 decision to Lebanon Valley.
This year, though, the Blue Jays are coming back with a vengeance. The team has started their season strong, with a 2-0 record, including crucial wins over Kean, 6-3, and Lebanon Valley, 2-1, the fifth-ranked team in the country.
In the Jays' season opener against Kean on Friday, four different players scored and six players had at least one point. Junior Maggie Phillips scored her first career goal en route to a hat trick, the first hat trick for Hopkins field hockey since Emily Miller scored three goals against Dickinson in October 2008.
Kean jumped in front early in the first half thanks to a goal from all-American Olivia Triano. Triano slammed a hard shot from the top of the circle past senior captain and reigning Centennial Conference first-team goalkeeper Kim Stein. However, the Blue Jays battled back with two goals from Phillips and pushed ahead, 2-1. Senior forward Carly Bianco, a second team all-Centennial selection in 2010, extended the lead to two goals from a penalty corner off a pass senior midfielder Olivia Ross.
Just two minutes into the second half, Kean's Stephanie Soares put one in the net to tighten the game up at 3-2. However, Phillips pushed Hopkins' lead back out to two by completing her hat trick.
Kean then responded again with a goal to make the game 4-3, but a pair of unanswered goals by junior Liane Tellier and senior Ali Bahneman sealed the game up for Hopkins.
The Blue Jays only scored six or more goals in one game last season, a 10-0 win versus Bryn Mawr.
The Kean and Lebanon Valley games were very different. For one, the Blue Jays had not played Kean since 2004 and therefore knew little about the team. Lebanon Valley, on the other hand, has been an annual fight.
This year's affair was not only circled because of the defeat the Lady Jays suffered a year ago, but also because the Dutchwomen had not lost to Hopkins in 20 years.
Hopkins got on the board first with a fantastic goal by senior Annie Shepard. The goal was scored on a 1-on-1 play with the goalie, and she confidently did a pull move around the Lebanon Valley goalie to sneak it into the lower left corner for Hopkins.
Lebanon Valley called a timeout following Shepard's goal and came back out on the field rejuvenated. The Dutchwomen scored within two minutes of play to tie the game up at 1-1. The game would stay that way until the second half, when Shepard struck again.
Shepard scored the game-winner with a perfectly executed corner play, assisted by senior Ali Bahneman. The Dutchwomen would battle back, but great defensive play from seniors Amy Wharton and Veronica Radice prevented Lebanon Valley from making an impact. The score stood at 2-1 at the final whistle and the Blue Jays emerged victorious in the upset over the fifth-ranked team in the country.
Hopkins returns to action this weekend when they travel to Boston to play Babson and MIT. The MIT game will pit senior Amy Wharton, who has started 42 consecutive games, against her sophomore sister Maddy Wharton, who starts for MIT.
The Blue Jays are captained by seniors Zoe Koven and Kim Stein and have great leadership from their eleven seniors. The team is excited for the year and looking forward to working together as a team to accomplish their goals for the season.
