Sept. 21, 2008
BABSON PARK, Mass. - Freshman forward Anna Giannoni (Granby, Conn.) scored her third goal of the day with 7:26 remaining in the second overtime to lift the visiting Endicott College Gulls to a thrilling 4-3 victory over 16th-ranked Babson College in a non-conference field hockey contest at MacDowell Field on Sunday afternoon. With their seventh straight victory, the Gulls improved to 8-1 on the year, while the Beavers fell to 5-2.
Endicott took an early 1-0 lead when Giannoni tipped a pass from sophomore Joanne Reid (Clarksville, Md.) inside the left post at 11:30. However, the Beavers erupted with three unanswered goals in a span of 5:21 to take a 3-1 advantage into the break. Senior co-captain Nicole Cemelli (Towaco, N.J.) tallied the tying goal when she swept a shot from the right side just inside the left post at 24:24. Senior Karin Dietz (Troy, Mich.) then put Babson in front with a goal off a direct drive on a penalty corner at 27:40, with Cemelli and sophomore Sarah Fredlund (New Preston, Conn.) picking up assists. Fredlund then netted the host's third goal of the half when she one-timed a feed from junior Jess Paladino (Turner, Maine) at the left post at 29:45.
Facing its first defeat since August 30, the Gulls began their comeback early in the second half, as Reid gathered a rebound and flicked a shot into the right corner at 43:46. The two teams then battled at a furious pace over the next 27 minutes, with Babson goalie Jessica Pashos (Winchester, Mass.) and Endicott keeper Chelsea DeFeo (York, Maine) each making five saves. DeFeo made four straight stops at one point, including another penalty corner drive by Dietz at 55:27 and a hard shot by Paladino at 55:51. At the other end, Pashos made a tremendous diving save on a clean breakaway attempt by Gulls freshman Francesca Parese (Wilton, Conn.) at 61:29 and then followed that up with clutch stops on consecutive Endicott penalty corners at 61:29 and 64:51.
With less than 20 seconds remaining, Endicott forced the ball into the Babson circle and a scramble ensued in front. The ball then kicked out to the left side to Giannoni, who blasted a shot into the cage with 6.9 seconds remaining in regulation, tying the contest at 3-3. That set the stage for two exciting overtime periods that saw numerous chances for both teams.
Endicott had a golden opportunity early in the first overtime, as Pashos was forced to cover the ball after making a fantastic diving save on a rocket by senior Jennifer Beech (Devonshire, Bermuda) at 72:05. However, the ensuing penalty stroke sailed just wide of the left post, keeping Babson's hopes alive. The Beavers followed that up with two huge defensive plays - the first when junior Alyssa L'Bassi (Shrewsbury, Mass.) broke up a potential breakaway in the circle with 76:20 left and the second when Dietz made a key defensive save at 78:30. Babson then had an excellent chance at the other end, but DeFeo made a save on a point-blank shot by Paladino and the rebound rolled just under the stick of a forward at the far post.
The Gulls finally secured the victory in the second overtime. After DeFeo stopped a Fredlund bid at 92:02, the Gulls sent the ball upfield to Parese, who broke in all alone on Pashos. Babson's rookie goalie made an outstanding diving play to poke the ball away, but the ball trickled to the left side where Giannoni collected it and fired a shot into a wide open net for the game-winner at 92:34.
DeFeo made 10 saves in the victory for Endicott, while Pashos finished with 11 saves in defeat for Babson With the win, Endicott improves to 8-1 overall and has a legitimate shot at breaking of cracking into the national top-25 poll. The Gulls return to action on Wednesday when they host Salem State at 4:00 p.m.
