California Golden Bears Athletics
California
Northeastern
Field Hockey Shut Out By Northeastern
9/9/2000 12:00 PM | Field Hockey
Sept. 8, 2000
STANFORD - Playing their first game of the season away from Kleeberger Field and playing without two key players, Cal struggled against the Huskies, losing 3-0 Friday afternoon at Stanford.
Cal managed just two shots the entire game as the Bears struggled to break into the offensive attack. When Cal had possession of the ball, it rarely managed to get a successful second pass off as Northeastern's loose zone defense stifled the Cal midfielders and forced them into haste and inaccurate passes.
"I thought (the zone defense) would actually be easier for us, but we got a little impatient and tried to force passes that we didn't need to force," said coach Shellie Onstead.
With Cal's offense almost nonexistent, the Huskies managed to keep the ball in the Bears' zone most of the game tallying up an impressive 15 penalty corners.
Krisanne Duchemin scored a goal at 5:22 of the first half and that was all that Northeastern really needed for the rest of the afternoon.
In the second half, Cal tried to change the momentum of the game, but with no avail. The Huskies continued to rack up the penalty corners.
With 13:14 left in the game, junior back Erin Robinson stopped the ball with her foot on a defensive play when the shot was clearly on its way into the goal. Northeastern was awarded a penalty stroke and they took advantage as Catriona Semple gave the Huskies an insurance goal.
The Huskies were not done yet as junior midfielder Lorna Dobbie kept the heat on the Bears' defense with a goal off of a rebound to put the Huskies up 3-0.
Freshman Nora Feddersen, who leads the team in shots on goal with 17, was held out of the game due to lingering effects of bronchitis while senior back Leticia Galyean sat out with an ankle sprain.
Their presence was surely missed as the backfield lost a defensive stalwart in Galyean, and the midfield, crucial to the success of the offensive aspect of the game, missed the deft stickhandling of Feddersen at that position.
Without the two players, head coach Shellie Onstead shuffled the line-up and played many players out of position, while also giving seldomly used players an opportunity to play.
"We had an inexperienced midfield, and that's where it showed up," said coach Onstead. "I'm actually proud of the team in terms of how they went at (handling the new positions). They actually did quite well, and I think they learned a lot from this game."
Cal now embarks on a road trip when they play three games in a span of four days. Harvard, Rhode Island, and No.7 Boston University await the Bears in New England for next weekend's matchups.
Field Hockey Result Stanford, CA
California 0 0 - 0 Northeastern 1 2 - 3
Scoring: First Half N - Krissanne Duchemin 9:22 Second Half N - Catriona Semple 13:14 N - Lorna Dobbie 10:04Shots: Cal 2 Northeastern 30
Records: Cal 2-1 Northeastern 2-1
