HAVERFORD, Pa. - Facing a top 10 opponent for the second consecutive contest, the Haverford College field hockey team (6-4, 0-3 CC) was stunned by a furious fourth quarter comeback from No. 10 Johns Hopkins (8-2, 3-0 CC) in a 2-1 loss on Swan Field Saturday.
Haverford got on the scoreboard first, taking the lead in the seventh minute of the contest. After winning possession near midfield, Casey Wakai sent a nice cross-field pass to the top of the circle for Kelsey Chai. Chai hammered home a shot that weaved through the back line of the Blue Jays and past the lunging attempt from goalkeeper Kaitlin Hall for her third goal of the season. Wakai was credited with her second assist of the year as the Fords capped a stellar first quarter in which they fired off five shots in total.
Sunny Truslow was called into action often in the early goings, reprising her strong efforts in the cage against yet another ranked opponent. A pair of Johns Hopkins shots were corralled by the junior in the second period as the Fords headed to the intermission with the 1-0 lead as well as a 5-4 advantage in shots and a 3-1 lead in the corner battle.
Haverford had a pair of good scoring chances in the third quarter, with a pair of blocked shots off penalty corners in the 36th minute. Truslow was tested in the final moments of the stanza, as Sarah Matyas tallied a shot that was saved. Truslow made two more denials in the early moments of the fourth quarter before Caroline Aronowitz cleared two shots off the backline, registering a pair of defensive saves in the process.
The Blue Jays were awarded a penalty stroke in the 53rd minute, but the shot attempt sailed wide of the cage, allowing the Fords to escape the equalizer. Unfortunately for the hosts, the tying goal eventually came in the 58th minute as Izzy Thompson found daylight and slotted a pass towards the waiting stick of Michaela Corvi, who scored to level things at 1-1 with just over two minutes left in regulation.
With Haverford stepping up its defensive effort, the Blue Jays also pushed the tempo looking for a go-ahead strike in the closing moments. Truslow turned a way a pair of attempts on frame with saves in the final minute, but yet another penalty corner went the way of Johns Hopkins with just six ticks showing on the scoreboard. The Blue Jays found the go-ahead goal off that final corner as Corvi again slotted home a shot from a Maddie Brown-Scherer pass, allowing the visitors to escape with a 2-1 victory.
Johns Hopkins out-shot Haverford by an 18-12 margin, but the Fords won the corner tally at 8-6. Truslow was called into action to make eight saves. Lucy Tortolani had three shots to pace the Fords, while Roxy Vassighi and Delaney Snowden each recorded a pair. Emma Iacobucci and Rylee Fennell also notched attempts on frame.
Haverford now returns to action on Wednesday, taking on No. 9 Ursinus in Collegeville, Pa. The midweek contest under the lights is slated to begin at 7 p.m.