FREDERICK, Md. – Heartbreak quickly turned into jubilation at Thomas Athletic Field when the Hood College field hockey team fell to Alvernia 2-1 in double overtime but learned they had still made it to the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth playoffs for the first time in program history.
Inside the Box Score
Kate Haufe (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) scored the only goal the Blazers had.
Ellie Dainton (Mays Landing, NJ./Saint Joseph Academy) assisted on the goal.
Grace Guy (Mechanicsville, Md./Chopticon) made nine saves in goal.
How it Happened
Although both teams had quality chances to add a couple goals in the first quarter, Alvernia got significantly more shots on goal, but Guy did well to keep everything in front of her and maintain the scoreless tie heading into the second quarter.
Neither team could get any decent offensive opportunities for a majority of the second quarter, but a free hit in the midfield for the Blazers saw Dainton find a streaking Haufe who outran the Golden Wolves' defense and chipped the goalie to give Hood the lead with her team-leading ninth goal of the season.
Morgan Hackett (Hampstead, Md./Hereford) looked like she had a breakaway to potentially double the lead, but the clock ran out before she was able to get to the shooting circle as Hood went into halftime up 1-0.
The third quarter saw plenty of prime scoring opportunities for both squads, but once again the defenses and goalies stood tall, as the Blazers needed to hold on for 15 more minutes to secure a playoff berth.
Alvernia came out for the fourth quarter on fire, pressuring Hood's defense until a penalty corner was given, and the Golden Wolves would finally manage to capitalize on it, tying the game with just over 10 minutes to play in regulation. Similar to the previous game against Stevenson, the Blazers had another penalty corner in the final minute, but could not score off it, instead heading to their seventh overtime of the season.
Both sides were clearly gassed from the past 60 minutes, but it was hard to tell with the pace of play still so high. Despite starting the overtime period with almost two minutes of power play, the Blazers could not strike and end the game quickly but were able to quickly turn around and play rock solid defense to keep Alvernia from scoring as a second overtime period was needed.
A Hood penalty corner just over a minute into double overtime saw Madeline Moren hit an absolute rocket that appeared to sneak past goalie Zoe Caloviras for the game-winner, but further review showed it missed and got lodged in between the tire of the goal. Just a few minutes later, a slew of penalty corners for the Golden Wolves led to a rare penalty stroke being awarded to Alvernia, and Ava Michael slotted home the shot to hand the home team a 2-1 loss.
About 10 minutes after the game had finished though, it was announced that through a tiebreaker that ended up determined through Hood's head-to-head results against Widener, the Blazers had actually qualified for the MAC Commonwealth Championships.
For the Opponent
Michael scored both goals for the Golden Wolves.
Caloviras saved three shots in the win.
Notes
Hood finishes the regular season 8-10 (3-4), while Alvernia ends their season 8-11 (3-4).
This playoff berth marks the first time the Blazers have made it to the postseason since joining the MAC in 2011.
Up Next
The Blazers will take on #1 seeded Stevenson University in the MAC Commonwealth Championship semifinals Wednesday, November 5 at 5 p.m.
