MEDFORD - In a game that was tied 0-0 at halftime, the 12th ranked Tufts field hockey team scored five times in the second half on their way to a 5-1 victory over Connecticut College in NESCAC action on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Bello Field.
Five different Jumbos scored goals as the hosts improved to 8-2 overall and 4-2 in NESCAC with their third straight win. Senior co-captain Taylor Dyer (Windham, NH) had a goal and an assist to lead Tufts, including a penalty-stroke goal.
Visiting Connecticut College lost its third in a row, falling below .500 to 4-5 overall and to 1-5 in the league.
First year goalie Becca Napolitano (Hamden, CT) led a good effort by the visiting Camels in the first half, making four saves. Tufts had advantages of 10-3 in shots and 6-4 in corners for the first 35 minutes, but upset-minded Connecticut College went to intermission even at 0-0.
The Jumbos broke the tie quickly in the second half, scoring twice in the first eight minutes. Senior co-captain Lindsay Griffith (Wilmington, DE) tallied on a rebound just 2:32 into the period for her fourth goal in the last two games. Five minutes later, junior Kelsey Perkins (Barrington, RI), Dyer and junior Rachel Gerhardt (Worcester, MA) executed perfectly on a corner, with Gerhardt's blast from the top of the circle slamming into the back of the goal for a 2-0 Tufts lead.
At the 17:16 mark, Tufts was awarded a penalty stroke when an offensive player was blocked out of position in front of the cage. Dyer converted, and the Jumbos have now scored on penalty strokes in four straight games. They have five penalty-stroke goals overall this season, including four by Dyer.
The lead ballooned to 4-0 less than two minutes after the stroke when Perkins was on the spot for rebound, scoring her sixth of the season.
The Camels broke up the shutout bid in the 67th minute of action when sophomore Andrea Hoisington (Brownsville, VT) fed a pass to senior Lauren Gaffny (North Andover, MA) in front and she finished for her fourth goal of the year.
Just 42 seconds later, the Jumbos put the icing on the cake with an excellent fast-break goal. First-year Brittany Norfleet (Solana Beach, CA) brought the ball upfield and passed to sophomore Chelsea Yogerst. With Napolitano charging to challenge the play, Yogerst brushed off some contact to score into an open cage for the fifth Jumbo goal.
Tufts finished with a 32-10 advantage in shots, including 22-7 in the second half. The final count on penalty corners was much closer, with the Jumbos owning a 12-10 edge. Napolitano finished with 13 saves for the Camels, including nine in the second half. Zak made five saves for Tufts.
The Jumbos have the week off until facing Williams next Saturday on Homecoming Day. Connecticut College has Wellesley next on Wednesday at 4:30 pm.
Game statistics
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