NORTON, Mass. – The Wheaton College (Mass.) field hockey team was defeated by visiting Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 3-0, this afternoon in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Nordin Field on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons dip to 7-7 overall and 3-3 in league play, while the Engineers improve to 9-5 and 5-1.
Both teams were held scoreless for nearly the entire first half, before MIT scored with just 12 ticks left in the second quarter. The opening quarter did not see a shot recorded by either team. The Engineers owned a 13-7 shot advantage for the day, despite Wheaton outshooting them, 4-1, in the fourth quarter. MIT held an 8-4 margin in penalty corners for the game as well.
Senior forward Shealy Callahan (Oak Park, Ill.) scored a goal and assisted on another to lead the visitors.
The Engineers' first marker came off a penalty corner with less than 30 seconds to play in the second period. Sophomore defender Drew Husser (Dover, Mass.) took the initial shot inside the arc, before Lyon junior keeper Grace Ferguson (Williston, Vt.) made a diving stop, but Callahan was there with a rebound shot that was deposited into the left corner for her second tally of the year and a 1-0 MIT lead with just 12 seconds left in the opening half.
The Engineers carried their momentum into the second stanza, scoring less than two minutes into the third quarter off another penalty corner to take a 2-0 margin. Callahan tipped a shot in the goalmouth that Ferguson was able to knock down, but Callahan was able to squirt a feed past Ferguson and to junior forward Janine Thomas (Houston, Texas) for her team-high seventh goal from the right slot.
MIT wasted no time in the fourth quarter either, scoring just 97 seconds into the final period of play for a 3-0 advantage. First year midfielder Sierra Kim (Newtown, Pa.) carried the ball into the goalmouth, before sending a low shot into the far left post for her second score of the season with 13:23 remaining in the contest.
Wheaton's best chance to score in the match came with the Engineers' owning a 2-0 lead with just over five minutes left in the third quarter. Sophomore midfielder Kayla Wilonski (Wallingford, Conn.) wound up for a shot from the top of the arc on the right side, but junior goalie Maeve Zimmer (Rockville, Md.) was able to make a save with her blocker on the right post of the cage with 5:40 left to go in the period.
Wilonski finished the match with a team-high five shots for the Lyons, while Ferguson turned away five shots for the home team. Zimmer finished with one save to record her third shutout of the season and sixth of her career for MIT.
The Engineers return to action on Tuesday, October 21 when they head to Worcester, Mass. to take on NEWMAC rival Worcester Polytechnic Institute at 7:00 p.m., while Wheaton travels to Newport, R.I. on the same day to face league foe Salve Regina University at 6:00 p.m.
