Field hockey splits weekend games

The potency of the IU field hockey team’s offensive attack jumped significantly in its second game against Massachusetts on Sunday in the UMass Invitational.

IU attempted seven shots in the first half of its contest against the Minutewomen after attempting just one against Boston College on Saturday.

“We were a completely different team from yesterday,” IU coach Amy Robertson said. “We moved the ball in a much more intelligent way, which allowed us to get into our circle with space and numbers. We just trusted each other today.”

Sophomore forward Brooke Borneman broke through with the first score in the 37th minute.

“We were all just really excited,” Borneman said. “We’d been playing really well. We were glad that it finally turned into a goal and that we were on the board after a lot of hard work.”

Borneman broke down how the play developed.

“The ball came out of the circle and came to the person on the corner,” she said. “She dribbled it in and took a shot. It came to the right post. That’s where I was, and I [put] it into the goal.”

Junior back Brenna Moeljadi added a second goal in the 42nd minute. Massachusetts forward Katie Kelly countered, tallying a goal in the 57th minute.

IU escaped a Minutewomen penalty corner in the final minute to earn a 2-1 victory and salvage a split of its games in the Bay State.

“I was really confident with us,” junior goalkeeper Becky Pany said. “I knew we’d be able to get it out. We practice defensive corners every day. We were all pretty calm in the back. I don’t know how everyone else was doing, but we were good.”

However, zeroes told the story on the scoreboard in the first half of IU’s season-opening contest against Boston College.

Pany excelled in the cage in the second half as she tallied five saves on seven Boston College shots before the Eagles broke through on a goal by midfielder Emily Kozniuk in the 50th minute.

The Eagles held on to defeat the Hoosiers, 1-0.

In her second collegiate start, Pany recorded three saves on six shots in the first half.
However, IU could not match Pany’s production on offense, managing just one shot in
each half.

The Hoosiers’ offensive attack improved in the second half. IU had an opportunity to take the lead in the 38th minute with a shot from sophomore forward Morgan Fleetwood, but Kristine Stigas, the Eagles’ goalkeeper, was there to record her lone save.

Robertson advised her players to put the loss behind them going into the Massachusetts game Sunday.

“I said, ‘You have a choice: You can either dwell on the loss or you can choose to be extra motivated and hungry and figure out a way to be a better team,’” she said.

Pany saw the difference in the team’s play in the Hoosiers’ second contest.

“I think as a whole, we came out as a team,” she said. “We didn’t play as individuals like we did the day before (against Boston College).”