Teplensky registers natural hat-trick

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – MIT, ranked No. 18 overall in the latest National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) national coaches poll, defeated Wheaton, 4-1, on Tuesday night in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action at Jack Barry Field.

Engineers' senior Michelle Teplensky (Somers, N.Y./North Salem) guided the offense with a natural hat-trick, all coming in the first half, while sophomore Siobhan Rigby (Richmond, Va./Maggie Walker Governor's School) rounded out the scoring for MIT in the 40th minute of the contest.

Wheaton senior co-captain Emily Chick (Bangor, Maine/Bangor) put the visitors on the scoreboard at the 61:58 mark off of a feed across the cage by freshman Amelia Gage (Lebanon, N.H./Lebanon).

MIT opened the scoring after 2:16 elapsed in the contest. Following a penalty corner, junior Elizabeth Dethy (Morristown, N.J./Phiips Exeter) chipped the ball up which Teplensky batted down towards the middle of the cage. Wheaton almost tallied the equalizer two minutes later when junior Sarah McNicholas (Boxboro, Mass./Acton-Boxboro) picked up a turnover in the Engineers' defensive end. McNicholas found herself in a 1-on-3 situation, but the attempt was thwarted by MIT junior Diane Kim (Acton, Mass./Acton-Boxborough) at the last second.

Despite solid play by the Lyons' defense just outside of the arc, junior Caitlin Mackey (San Diego, Calif./Torrey Pines) intercepted a pass and quickly sent it to Teplensky for her second goal of the night in the 11th minute. Wheaton's back line continued to stymie the Engineers' attack and eventually produced a bid by Chick that resulted in MIT sophomore goalie Evie Kyritsis (Mountain Lakes, N.J./Mountain Lakes) making a diving stick-save. The loose ball stayed within the arc but the visitors couldn't put another attempt on net.

The game became a back-and-forth affair until the Engineers capped the first-half scoring in the 29th minute. Courtesy of the Cardinal and Gray's sixth penalty corner of the frame, feeds from freshman Jane Coffrin (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Cape Elizabeth) and Dethy helped Teplensky record the first hat-trick of her career.

Coming out of the intermission, Wheaton generated four penalty corners and two shots but it was the hosts who found the back of the net. MIT capitalized on its own penalty corner in the 40th minute when Rigby sent a blast from the far side after being set up by Coffrin and freshman Emma Valentine (Endwell, N.Y.Maine-Endwell).

The Lyons almost got on the board midway through the second half when a feed in front of the goal rolled past Kyritsis. Facing a wide open near post, senior Jenna Rocha (Rehoboth, Mass./Dighton-Rehoboth) pursued the loose ball but couldn't put a stick on it. Wheaton ended the shutout attempt during a counterattack with 8:02 left to play as Chick redirected a pass from Gage.

In the cage, Kyritsis collected three saves in 62 minutes while sophomore Paige Kennedy (Eastchester, N.Y./School of the Holy Child) turned away two shots in relief. For the Lyons, senior Ellie Massengill (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Regional) played the first half and did not make a save as junior Madison Wolters (Marstons Mills, Mass./Barnstable) closed out the game with five stops.

Both squads will face league foe Clark University in their next outing. MIT will host the Cougars on Saturday, Oct. 12 while Wheaton will make the trip to Worcester, Mass. the following Saturday.

For the latest on Wheaton College Athletics, follow the Lyons via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.