Current Bobcats nip Alumnae on Homecoming

The rain held off and Alums from the classes of '74-10 took the field against the 2011 Bobcats. Sherry Deschaine(Coach Yak) was on hand to coach the Alumnae team and led her squad to a respectable 1-2 result. Twelve alums, some of whom had showed up to see Coach Yak, but not planned on playing, were swept up in the moment and took the field anyway. The prize for percentage of participation went by the class of 2010 with 3 of 4 alums in attendance. Sema Kazarian, Annie Wilson and Zoe Donaldson all returned and looked like they hadn't taken more than a couple of months off. The next best class participation went to 2008 with Brynna Kelley, Erin Chandler and Lindsay Ferguson representing 3 of the 5 of their class.


Cindy Andrews'74, Sue Doliner'81 and Mary Rafterty '81 all managed to find some semblance of athletic wear and took the field. Kerry Coffin McQuaid was the lone alum representing the 1990's and acquitted her decade admirably- playing 28 of 30 minutes! Andrew Rahedi '03, who managed the squad for four years and was a practice player also made an appearance and along with Helena Turner'09 anchored the Alumnae defense.

All in all it was a great day and we hope that next year even more Alums will return to celebrate 45 years of Field hockey at Bates as well as honoring Sherry Deschaine's 25 years of coaching.

Photos and stats to come!

Beaton & Bobcats Blast Beavers

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.


Full Stats available here

Bobcats grab first win of the season

LEWISTON, ME. The Bobcats (1-0, 1-0 NESCAC) clinched their first win of the season Saturday afternoon in a 1-0 victory over Williams (0-1, 0-1 NESCAC). Stellar play by goalkeeper, Becca Otley was instrumental in the Bates victory. Otley had 13 save in her debut, earning the shutout.

Play went back and forth for much of the first half, with neither team able to sustain attacking opportunities. While Williams had the edge in shots with 9 to the Bobcat's 4 the teams were even on penalty corners with two apiece.

The second half saw more of the same with fairly even play. Williams increased the pressure a little more than halfway through the second period, earning the majority of their six second half penalty corners in about seven minutes.

With 4:35 on the clock Bates called timeout. "We just needed to slow down and remind them of a couple of key things to look for and pay attention to." said Head Coach Wynn Hohlt. Apparently, this worked as the Bobcats took the ensuing 16yard hit and worked the ball down field and into the Eph's circle. A loose ball was gathered by sophomore Bridget Meedzan, she passed it to Junior Michelle Brady who put it into the back of the net with 4:07 to go.

While Williams continued to put pressure on the Bobcat defense, the momentum had shifted and the confidence with which Bates had been playing with earlier returned. "I am so proud of the way we played today." said Hohlt, "We had some really good passing combinations, we narrowly missed scoring on a beautifully executed corner, and we never gave up. It wasn't our prettiest hockey, but we won a lot of 50-50 balls and we just kept at it until we broke through. It is a great start to the season!"

Game Statisitcs

Here are the Bobcats!