LEWISTON, Maine -- Bates got back into winning form on Thursday evening after a rough road stretch that saw the Bobcats drop three tough games in five days. Even though two of those were to teams in the Top 15, it didn't make it any less painful. Needless to say we were happy to back on home turf this week!
The Bobcats came ready to play and perhaps feeling like they had a little something to prove on Thursday evening. They quickly took control of the ball and the play, moving down field and earning 7 penalty corners while generating 17 shots. Still it wasn't until just over 14 minutes into the half the Bates was able to find the back of the net when junior Nicole Santosuosso (Canton, Mass.) sent a ball from the the left side of the UMF circle to the far post. Senior Lyndsey Beaton (West Newbury, Mass.) Beaton beat her defender to the ball and one-timed it past the goalkeeper putting the Bobcats on the board and in the lead 1-0for a 1-0 lead. Despite a 17-3 Bates advantage in shots taken and a 7- 1 advantage in penalty corners, the score remained 1-0 at at the half.
The second half saw more of the same as Bates promptly stole the ball on UMF's passback and went in search of more scoring opportunities. Less than five minutes into the second period Senior co-captain Sarah Merullo's (Essex, Mass.)hit a ball into the circle where Beaton beat the UMF goalkeeper again by redirecting a shot into the corner of the net.
Beaton and the Bobcats dominated the second half to a even greater degree than the first, out shooting the Beavers 14-1 in the second frame while not allowing any penalty corners. Bates made it 3-0 with 7:06 remaining in the game on a penalty corner play, with sophomore Polly Merck's (Beverly, Mass.) well-place insertion pass stopped by Beaton and drilled it into the goal for her first career hat trick.
Beaton, Bates' leading scorer last season and an All-Region selection had been held scoreless in the first four games, but broke into the scoring column in a big way last night. Coach Wynn Hohlt said, "It was great for Lyndsay's confidence to finish on those plays tonight. She has a nose for the goal, but had been frustrated in out last few outings. This should give our offense a good boost!"
Hohlt was pleased by the way her team played. "We really got back to basics tonight, moving the ball quickly and for the most part appropriately using the whole field and controlling the play. We certainly benefited from getting second and third shots on net, creating scoring opportunities that we have been missing out on." She went on to credit UMF's play saying, "We always know that playing UMaine-Farmington is going to be a 70 minute game- you can't afford to let up, becasue they play hard until the end. I was proud that our team went out this evening and matched that intensity, especially since we a re bit banged up right now. It was a full team effort!"
Bates sophomore goalkeeper Becca Otley (Cumberland, Maine) made two saves for her second career shutout.
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