Crimson Drops Difficult Matchup Against UNH

The Harvard field hockey team suffered a loss to the University of New Hampshire Wildcats at New Hampshire’s Memorial field last night. The Wildcats were a strong opponent, having won all four previous home games played this season, and last night’s contest proved no different, as New Hampshire (5-2) emerged with a 3-1 victory. The Crimson (2-3) went in knowing that it would be a tough matchup facing an active Wildcat squad.

“They are very aggressive, similar to our style of play,” said sophomore goalie Cynthia Tassopoulos. “It was nice to match up against them and see how we would adjust.”

New Hampshire demonstrated that aggression and took the lead for the first time in the 14th minute of the first half thanks to a goal by Hayley Rausch assisted by Whitney Frates.

Ten minutes later, freshman Rachael Rosenfeld tied the game for the Crimson, burying a shot in the back of the net off a pass by senior Chloe Keating. For the second time this season, Rosenfeld found the first-half equalizer for her team, this time with a solid shot from the right side that beat New Hampshire goaltender Katherine Nagengast. For the remainder of the half, the two teams continued to battle for the lead.

“We were pretty evenly matched for the first half,” Tassopoulos said. “Our press was working well, and we were able to intercept the ball a lot. They were a good team.”

The Wildcats returned to the second half strong and began with a goal within the first five minutes. Having already assisted on the first score, Frates tallied one of her own to give New Hampshire the lead.

The aggressive team mindset benefited the Wildcats as they controlled the second half with a significant advantage in shots—firing 10 versus Harvard’s two. The few shots taken demonstrate the difference in the tone of the second half compared to the first, in which the Crimson took three times as many. On the other hand, The Wildcats’ shots began to find their mark more often. In about the same number of shots, New Hampshire scored twice as many goals in the second frame.

“I would say that when they scored each goal they gained momentum that was hard to overcome” sophomore Molly Stansik said. “We kind of found ourselves recovering and playing more defensively than we were hoping for.”

That momentum carried the Wildcats, and during the 52nd minute of the game, their lead was solidified when New Hampshire’s Megan Bozek, assisted by Kendall Deck and Hayley Rausch, scored the third and final goal of the game. This goal resulted from a penalty corner, another advantage that the Wildcats earned during the second half. Although Tassopoulos worked her way into good position to stop Bozek’s shot, the freshman midfielder’s attempt got caught in traffic in front of the goal and deflected off another player’s stick, leaving Tassopoulos helpless to defend it.

The Wildcats kept the pressure up throughout the contest, taking 10 corners while Harvard took just half that amount.

In total, New Hampshire outshot the Crimson, 19-8.

Tassopoulos handled the onslaught well, making a season-high 11 saves in total, including back-to-back penalty corners just a minute apart. The goaltender spent the majority of the second half under pressure, as the Wildcats frequently controlled possession in the Crimson’s defensive zone.

“They were getting by our forward line because they were able to penetrate our press and attack with numbers,” Stansik said.

Harvard hopes to use the experience of the Wildcats game to prepare for their upcoming contest against Yale. The team showed excitement for the first Ivy League game of the season.

Last year the Crimson lost by one point to the Bulldogs, but this year it hopes to use its home field advantage to gain a victory.

“Our first five games have prepared us for Ivy League competition, so we’re excited to see what we can do,” Stansik said.