HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College field hockey team (8-2, 1-2 CC) was edged by visiting second-ranked Johns Hopkins (10-0, 2-0 CC) in Centennial Conference action on Swan Field Saturday. The Fords matched the Blue Jays with 16 shots, but Hopkins was able to escape with a one-goal victory.
In the 11th minute of action, Johns Hopkins was awarded a penalty stroke. In a heroic turn in cage, Hannah Roth denied the attempt to keep the game scoreless. Despite defensive pressure from a swarming Haverford backline, the Blue Jays got on the scoreboard in the first quarter, adding a 13th minute strike from Tessa Erickson, as she took an assist from Grace Nockolds off a penalty corner and put the ball in the back squarely of the cage to give her side the lead.
Ravenel Davis and Rachel Marlin each sent in shots in the waning moments of the first half before a flurry of strikes from Anna Kirn opened the second. The Blue Jays earned a trio of corners but were denied in each attempt with Roth lunging to stop a shot from Sadie Abboud in the 25th minute. Zoey Despines fired just wide for the Fords before the halftime break, as JHU held on desperately to its one-goal advantage.
A defensive-minded third quarter saw the Fords with a few solid chances on cage, as Olivia Ahart and Delaney Snowden found solid opportunities in front of goal before the defense of Johns Hopkins was able to corral the shots and regain possession. Roth then again denied Abboud on the other end, and later made consecutive saves on chances from Nockolds and Sam Chabot as the third period came to a close.
Davis was on the attack for the equalizer to begin the fourth, rocketing three shots before the Fords earned a penalty corner in the 51st. A Delaney Snowden shot attempt was blocked before the visitors doubled their lead in the 52nd minute behind a Maddie Brown-Scherer goal, as the assist was credited to Abboud.
Undaunted, Haverford responded with a goal on its very next possession, with Davis earning her 13th goal of the season in the 55th minute, weaving her way past the Johns Hopkins backline and finishing a one-on-one opportunity with only the goalkeeper to beat. Davis, already eighth all-time in program single-season history for goals, continues to lead the conference in goals and points by a significant margin at the end of play Saturday.
A conservative approach from the visitors to chew clock worked to the advantage of the Blue Jays as Davis tallied just one final shot for Haverford, sending in a 56th minute attempt that served as the final salvo from either side. Davis finished with a game-best six shots, including four on frame. Caroline Channell picked up a defensive save in the first quarter, while Hannah Roth notched eight saves in her 60 minutes of action between the pipes.
The Fords will next be in action on Wednesday, October 6 against another ranked conference opponent, taking on No. 14 Franklin & Marshall under the lights. The contest is slated for a 7 p.m. start on Swan Field.