No. 14 Harvard Uses Fourth-Quarter Breakthrough To Give Field Hockey Its First Defeat Of The Year

Upper West Side NY

28 September, 2021

2:12 PM

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Columbia Daily Spectator BY MILES SCHACHNER SEPTEMBER 27, 2021 With a chance to upset a bitter Ivy League rival and extend a six-game winning streak to the longest in program history, the field hockey team faltered on Friday, suffering its first defeat of the season at the hands of a familiar foe. No. 14 Harvard (7-1, 1-0 Ivy) defeated the Lions (6-1, 0-1 Ivy) 4-1 in both teams' Ivy League opener. Following a tense three quarters during which neither team could push a goal across, the Crimson finally broke through in the fourth quarter, scoring three consecutive goals over a five-minute span. The Light Blue struggled to produce any offensive momentum as the Crimson took 22 more shots than the Lions did throughout the matchup and earned nine more penalty corners en route to victory. Harvard's offensive prowess was evident early on. The Crimson generated four penalty corners in the first quarter, testing the Lions' defensive unit and, in particular, senior goalkeeper Alexa Conomikes. Efficient passing powered Harvard's attack. The Crimson consistently worked the ball into Columbia's defensive zone and produced a number of scoring opportunities, creating 11 penalty corners and firing 28 shots throughout the match. Conomikes did all she could to fend off the Crimson's endless stream of attacks. The goalie made save after save throughout the first three quarters, contorting her body at times to send back 12 shots throughout the match—a season-high and two away from her career-high. Head coach Katie DeSandis said Conomikes' effort played an instrumental role in keeping the game close. "She was lights out. I was talking to her a little after the game, because honestly, if she didn't make half of those saves, [the deficit] would have been a lot more," DeSandis said. "Those were high-class saves." After three quarters of relentless offensive energy from the Crimson and dynamic saves from Conomikes, the nationally-ranked Harvard squad finally capitalized, scoring four goals in the fourth quarter against a Lions team that could no longer keep up. Despite Harvard's three consecutive fourth-quarter goals, the Lions were not entirely deflated. First-year midfielder Sophie Rockefeller found sophomore forward Anabelle Brodeur for the forward's third goal of the year, sneaking a shot past Harvard goalkeeper Ellie Schabo. But aside from Rockefeller and Brodeur's late connection, the Light Blue's offense was silent for most of the game as Harvard dominated the pace of play. The one goal was Columbia's weakest offensive output of the season thus far, an uncharacteristic showing for a team in which 10 different players have scored goals. Senior midfielder Kelsey Farkas credited the Crimson's defense for stifling the Lions' attack, explaining that the Crimson's tackling outside of the circle limited Columbia's offensive chances. DeSandis found some silver linings amid the offense's weak performance, noticing her team following through on some of the offensive progressions that have been a focus throughout the season. "We're starting to really work on cycling and recycling and how to exchange between lines," she said. "We just started talking about it, and we just started to see concepts of it today. So it's really exciting to think we just entered the middle part of the season and we're just starting to get to where we want to be by the end." Conomikes acknowledged the challenge that comes with playing an opponent like Harvard and noted that her confidence moving forward was unchanged despite the disappointing result in the team's first Ivy League contest. "Harvard played an incredible game. … They're the No. 14 team in the country now and they are for a reason; they're a very good team," Conomikes said. "I'm honestly incredibly proud of the way that our team responded, and I think that the score doesn't reflect the way that we played today. We played a heck of a game." After the loss, Conomikes had one message for her team: "A setback is a setup for a comeback." The senior thinks the early challenge against the Crimson will only help the Lions as they move forward in Ivy play. "They gave us good tests, and I think that's going to be super important when we're going into the rest of our season," she said. "Our season's not over, it's only just beginning. So, we'll take the lessons that we learned on the field with an incredible team that we played and take them with us as we move forward." The Lions will resume Ivy League play on Saturday, Oct. 2 in Ithaca against Cornell (3-3, 1-0 Ivy). The game begins at 12 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+. Deputy Sports Editor Miles Schachner can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @milesschachner. Founded in 1877, the Columbia Daily Spectator is the independent undergraduate newspaper of Columbia University, serving thousands of readers in Morningside Heights, West Harlem, and beyond. Read more at columbiaspectator.com and donate here.