Field Hockey Drops 5-2 Decision to Babson

BABSON PARK, Mass. -- Babson College junior Morgan Lockwood (Feeding Hills, Mass.) scored four goals, including a natural hat trick in the first half, to propel the Beavers to a 5-2 victory over visiting Bridgewater State University in a non-conference field hockey matchup at MacDowell Field on Tuesday night.

With the win, Babson improved to 5-2 on the season, while the Bears suffered their first loss of the year to fall to 5-1.

Lockwood scored the first of her four goals in the 12th minute of play. Off a restart, the junior forward executed a give-and-go with senior captain Kelly Walsh (Gardner, Mass.), who fed the ball down the middle of the field. Lockwood then carried it alongside a defender, pulled up, and blasted a shot into the lower left corner for her sixth goal of the season at 11:21.

Lockwood made it 2-0 at 27:35, taking a cross from Walsh on the left side and placing a hard shot inside the left post for her second of the night. She then completed the hat trick less than four minutes later, when she collected a rebound of junior Tricia McQuade's (Barrington, R.I.) saved shot on a penalty corner and stuffed it into the lower left corner to make it 3-0 at 31:07.

Bridgewater State nearly broke through between Lockwood's second and third strikes, but Babson junior goalie Kayla Florence (Milton, Mass.) made two clutch stops on back-to-back bids by Bears' senior captain Shelby Farland (Fiskdale, Mass.) in the 29th minute to keep the visitors off the board.

At the other end, Bridgewater State senior Cassie Johansen (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) limited the damage to just three goals in the first half. She made consecutive saves on a drive by McQuade and a follow-up bid by Lockwood early in the period, and then later made a nice stick save on a Lockwood shot following a Bear turnover in their defensive end.

Bridgewater State finally broke through with a goal nine minutes into the second half. After successfully defending back-to-back penalty corners, the Bears got the ball to Farland, who broke down the left side and carried the ball deep into the corner. She then cut it back into the circle and sent a blast to the far side of the goal mouth, where junior Demi Miskiv (Centerville, Mass.) tipped it inside the right post for her sixth goal of the season at 44:02. It was Miskiv's sixth marker of the fall, tying her with Farland for the team lead.

The Bears nearly cut their deficit to one in the 53rd minute, but Florence came up big again, this time redirecting a tipped shot by junior Carissa Vizakis (Bellingham, Mass.) beyond the left post at 53:32. The Beavers then extended their lead at the other end, as Lockwood took a nice pass from first-year Melanie Jordan (Westford, Mass.) on the left side and hit a spectacular backhanded shot that glanced off the far post and trickled over the goal line for her fourth of the night and ninth of the season at 57:15.

Babson later made it 5-1 when sophomore Caroline Malone (Walpole, Mass.) scored off a cross from the right side by junior Alex Cabreros (San Diego, Calif.) at 60:06. It marked the fifth consecutive game in which Malone has scored a goal - the longest streak by a Babson player since Courtney Weaving '12 scored in six straight contests back in 2010.

Bridgewater State would manage one final goal with under two minutes remaining, as Vizakis converted a short pass from Farland for her third of the season at 68:16. That would prove to be the final shot of the night for either squad as Babson came away with the 5-2 win.

With her two assists, Farland extended her point-scoring streak to ten games dating back to last season.

Florence finished with a total of four saves with one goal allowed in just over 60 minutes of play, while first-year Kayla Costa (Watertown, Mass.) went the final 10 minutes and turned away one shot for the Beavers. Johansen made six stops in the first half for Bridgewater State before giving way to junior Kacie Sturgeon (Dartmouth, Mass.), who added five saves in the second half.