Kazarian's goals lift field hockey past Colby and into playoffs
October 29, 2010



Sema Kazarian's two second-half goals propelled Bates past Colby for a spot in the NESCAC Championship.
LEWISTON, Maine -- Bates senior Sema Kazarian scored two second-half goals to lift the Bates College field hockey team to a come-from-behind, 2-1 NESCAC victory over visiting Colby on Friday at Campus Avenue Field, in the regular-season finale for both teams.

With the win, Bates (5-9, 2-7 NESCAC) earned the eighth and final seed in the NESCAC Field Hockey Championship. The Bobcats will play at No. 1 seed Tufts on Sunday at 1 p.m. in the tournament quarterfinals. Connecticut College and Bates both finished with identical conference records of 2-7, tying for seventh place in the final standings. In head to head competition, Connecticut College defeated Bates to earn the No. 7 seed.

Colby finishes the year at 6-8 overall, 1-8 NESCAC.

Colby senior Heather Quadir (Medfield, Mass.) scored an unassisted goal, her team-high fifth tally, less than five minutes into the contest to give the Mules an early lead. Quadir collected a loose ball on a Colby penalty corner, and her shot was deflected by a Bates stick past senior goalkeeper Katie McEnroe (Hockessin, Del.). Colby outshot Bates 14-5 in the first half.

Kazarian (Providence, R.I.) evened the game in the 43rd minute, redirecting a shot by junior Kelly McManus (Plymouth, N.H.) past Colby senior goalie Liz Fontaine (Wilbraham, Mass.). Kazarian struck again four minutes later, when sophomore Laura Baran (Pittsburgh, Pa.) forwarded the ball on a restart, and Kazarian again was there to deflect the ball into the Colby net for her third goal of the season.

McEnroe kept the game tied at 1-1 during the second half when she turned away a Colby fast-break opportunity.

McEnroe made 13 saves in goal for Bates, while Fontaine totaled seven saves for Colby, which outshot Bates 25-15 and earned 11 penalty corners to Bates' four.

Regular Season Wrap-Up

Entering their final week of regular season competition, the Bobcats find themselves at a record of 4-9 (1-7 in the NESCAC).

Following the Babson game, Bates notched another "W" with a 3-0 final score versus the University of Southern Maine. The Bobcats split their next two matches, with a conference loss to Wesleyan (1-4; look for a post detailing this Play 4 The Cure game soon!) & a victory against New England College (4-1). Yesterday, the team took on NESCAC competitor Middlebury at Middlebury, VT, & came up short, losing 1-4.

With one regular season game left on the schedule, the Bobcats will look to buckle-down & get to work this week in practice. This Friday, October 29, Bates will play host to NESCAC rival Colby College. Most likely, the winner of the game will move on to the eight-team NESCAC Championship, which begins with quarter-final play on October 31. The Bobcats will look to refocus collectively & individually in preparation for the big game. GO BATES!

Bates Athletics Bobcat of the Week

Katie McEnroe, ‘11

Katie was recognized for her 16 save effort in helping the Bobcats down Williams 1-0 in last weekend’s NESCAC match-up. In addition, Katie made a number of remarkable saves (12 total) versus Babson to keep the Bobcats in the game & ultimately force overtime. Katie leads the NESCAC in saves with 114 total.

Bobcats take Babson to OT, fall 2-1

BABSON PARK, Mass. -- The Bobcats put in a determined, focused effort, but eventually fell to the Babson Beavers 2-1 in the first overtime period at MacDowell Field on Sunday afternoon.

Bates struck first in the opening period, as junior Sarah Merullo (Essex, Mass.) pulled the ball out of a scramble in front of the cage and ripped a drive toward the lower left corner. Babson junior goalie Jess Pashos managed to get the tip of her stick on it, but the ball tipped inside the left post for the game’s first goal at 20:37.

After the goal, Bates continued to dominate play in the first half. The second half saw a surge in offense by Babson, yet Bates still had numerous chances to add to its own score. Most notably, about halfway through, junior Lyndsay Beaton (West Newbury, Mass.) took a shot from the top right side of the circle that struck the upper far post. With about five seconds to play in regulation, sophomore Riley Kundtz (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) narrowly missed a tip-in with a diving effort off the far post.

Babson had several chances to tie the game in the second half, but Bobcats senior goalie Katie McEnroe (Hockessin, Del.) made several outstanding saves to keep the hosts off the board. She made a tremendous kick save on a drive toward the right corner in the 52nd minute, and then denied another bid from in front of the cage less than six minutes later. McEnroe's best save of the day came with just under 10 minutes to go in regulation, when a Beaver fed the ball to a wide-open teammate in the middle of the circle. The Beavers’ star rookie ripped a shot from point-blank range, but McEnroe came charging out of net and made a sprawling save to preserve the Bobcats’ lead.

The Beavers did score in the 63rd minute of play, beginning with a hard shot from the right side that was saved by McEnroe. The rebound kicked out to the middle of the circle, where a waiting Beaver shot into an open cage to knot the game at 1-1 with 7:33 remaining in regulation.

Both teams had great scoring chances in the overtime period, including two just 23 seconds apart. A Babson foward had an open look from the top of the circle that was denied by a kick save from McEnroe at 72:23, and after Bates took the ball the length of the field, the Beaver keeper made a nice kick save on a shot by Bates junior Lyndsay Beaton (West Newbury, Mass.) at 72:40.

After earning their third penalty corner of the overtime period, Babson finally clinched the victory in the 83rd minute. The ball was inserted to the top of the circle, where the hitter dished a pass to a teammate on her left. The two then executed a give-and-go that resulted in an open look from the top of the circle, where the game-winning goal was generated at 82:44.

Katie Mc Enroe played a stellar game in goal and the defense did a good job keeping Babson's attack in check. Although a “W” would certainly have been the preferred outcome, the Bobcats are proud of their continued improvements, determination, & attention to details on the pitch.

The Bobcats will take on their next opponent, the University of Southern Maine, tomorrow at 5 p.m. on their own turf. You can catch the action via live video streaming at First Team Broadcasting's Bates website. Go Bobcats!

Bobcats beat Williams!

On a beautiful, but chilly October day, the Bates field hockey team defeated Williams by a score of 1-0. As easily as the score could have been 3-1 in the Bobcat's favor, there was something extra-special about notching the 1-0 win.


From the first whistle, Bates played with urgency and focus. We were able to generate more offensive opportunities and to put some real pressure on the Williams defense. Finally that pressure paid off as senior defender Annie Wilson (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) picked off an attempted pass at the 25, carried the ball into the circle and sent a hard pass to the left, where her former high school teammate, Kundtz (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) was waiting at the post to redirect the ball past Williams goalkeeper Katrina Tulla for a 1-0 lead.

Bates had a slight edge in play in the first half especially in terms of time of possession , but as we knew would happen Williams turned up the pressure in the second half. Both teams had good scoring opportunities that they were unable to capitalize on. The Bobcats had a number of breakaway chances that we just couldn't quite finish off.

The Garnet defense held tough throughout the contest and came up with some brilliant plays. Senior goalkeeper Katie McEnroe (Hockessin, Del.) tallied 16 saves while junior Mackenzie Ross(N. Yarmouth, ME) had a clutch defensive save in the second half to preserve the lead. Junior Amanda Brusca(Pride's Crossing, MA), sophomore Alie Philip(Simsbury, CT) and senior captain Zoe Donaldson(Bronxville, NY) also made some crucial plays inside our defensive 25 to help shut down the Williams attack.

The victory was our first conference win of the season, but more importantly was the first game that Bates played the way they are capable of playing for the entire(or most of) 70 minutes. It was great to get the win at home on Parents and Family weekend and to be able to have so many of the parents present!

Currently, we are on our way to Babson to take on the Beavers in a non-conference game with a 2pm start. If you can't be there in person please check us out online-the game can be followed via Live Stats: and via live video:http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/babson.portal#

Bates Athletics Bobcat of the Week

Lyndsay Beaton '12

Bates junior forward Lyndsay Beaton (West Newbury, Mass.) scored single goals in both her rookie and sophomore seasons with the Bates field hockey team. But this season she has asserted herself as the team's top scorer, and one of its most consistent performers as well.

Beaton scored a goal in Bates' game at UMaine-Farmington last Wednesday, and she assisted on sophomore Michelle Brady's (Milton, Mass.) goal in Saturday's setback at No. 2 nationally ranked Tufts. Beaton has scored points in five out of seven games this season, including goals against three nationally ranked NESCAC opponents in Amherst, Bowdoin and Trinity.