Savage's Hat Trick Pushes Field Hockey Past Bryant, 5-2

Sunday, September 18

Hanover, N.H.

3:00 PM

Dartmouth College

BRYANT

Savage's Hat Trick Pushes Field Hockey Past Bryant, 5-2

9/18/2011 6:01:00 PM | Field Hockey

By: Dartmouth

HANOVER, N.H. - Freshman Ali Savage (Orange, New South Wales, Australia) scored three times as the Dartmouth field hockey team handed Bryant a 5-2 defeat Sunday afternoon at Chase AstroTurf Field.

Five goals ties the Big Green's (4-2) season high set in the opener against Sacred Heart (W, 5-0), while the defense held Bryant (2-4) to just five shots on goal in the game. Dartmouth finished the contest with 38 shots, including 24 on goal.

Seniors Meghan Everett (Flemington, N.J.) and Kelly Hood (Berlin, N.H.) also added tallies in the game. Everett got her team on the board first, finally putting a shot past Bryant's goalkeeper Jennifer Gullotti 24:34 into the game. Despite its dominating performance early in the contest, Dartmouth had been unable to figure out the Bulldogs' keeper.

Once Everett broke the scoreless tie, it took just another two and a half minutes for the Big Green to strike again, as Savage took a pass from freshman Janine Leger (Johannesburg, South Africa) in the low circle and slipped in her first of the afternoon.

Five minutes into the second half Savage struck again, this time on a loose ball in front to make it 3-0.

Hood's team-leading eighth of the season came on a well-placed deflection on a long ball from sophomore Olivia Quaglia (Los Altos, Calif.) just eight minutes later, giving the Big Green the four-goal cushion.

Fittingly, it was Savage who finished the scoring for Dartmouth on this day. After a Bryant defender made a save behind Gullotti, Savage pounced on the loose-ball opportunity. Unable to clear it from harm's way, the Bryant defense watched as Savage knocked in her third of the game and just the fourth of her career.

With the offense playing well, Dartmouth's defense did its part, holding the Bulldogs to just three shots on goal in the game, with all coming in the final 10 minutes of play.

Senior Meagan Vakiener (Port Murray, N.J.) got the start in goal for the Big Green, playing the first half before giving way to Jenna Stearns (Thornton, N.H.) in the second. Stearns made two saves in her season debut in 35 minutes of action.

Down five, Bryant made a late push, getting two goals from Rosie Bird and Kayleigh Ballantyne to make it a three-goal game, 5-2.

Dartmouth controlled the play the entire game, holding distinct advantages in both shots (38-6) and corners (8-1).

The Big Green had little turnaround time for Sunday's game as it handed No. 19 Princeton a 2-1 defeat Saturday afternoon. That win marked the first time since the 2004 season that Dartmouth knocked off the Tigers, while also snapping Princeton's 24-game win streak in league play dating back to the 2007 season.

There will be more time to rest for Dartmouth this week, as it plays next on Saturday, Sept. 24 at Brown. That game is set for a noon start. The Big Green will return to Hanover to take on Holy Cross on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 3 p.m.