Field Hockey Falls to 13th Ranked Wellesley, 8-1

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Wellesley College lit up the scoreboard for the third straight game as the visiting Blue posted an 8-1 victory over Bridgewater State University in non-conference field hockey action on Sunday afternoon at Swenson Field.

The Blue (3-0) have scored 25 goals through the first three games of the season while outscoring their opponents by a margin of 25-1. Wellesley is ranked 13th in the latest National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division III Poll.

Junior midfielder Anissa Sridhar (Idlerton, Ontario) paced the visitors with two goals and two assists while sophomore forward Courtney Peterson (Glastonbury, Ct.) tallied a pair of goals and an assist. Senior forward Nathalie Gruet (Acton, Mass.) also scored twice for the Blue while junior forward Hannah Flesch (Rockville, Md.) and sophomore midfielder Nikki Sharkin (Summit, N.J.) each recorded a goal and an assist.

Flesch, Sridhar and Gruet broke a scoreless tie with three goals in a span of less than three minutes with 8:35 remaining in the first half.

Sridhar and Gruet tallied back-to-back goals within the first two minutes of the second stanza to put the game well out of reach.

Gruet would also score on a penalty shot in the 43rd minute to give Wellesley a 6-0 lead.

The host Bears were able to break up the shutout bid in the 55th minute when sophomore midfielder Brittany Cullinane (Lunenburg, Mass.) found the back of the net off a penalty corner with junior forward Kelsey Kiely (Mansfield, Mass.) picking up the assist.  For Cullinane it was her second marker of the season.

Peterson and Sharkin rounded out the scoring for Wellesley later in the period. The Blue held a 23-3 shot advantage for the game as well as an 11-3 edge in penalty corners.

Junior Lucy Hurlock (Needham, Mass.) and senior Becky Hamilton (New York, N.Y.) combined to make one save for the visitors as they each played a half between the pipes.  BSU sophomore netminder Kaylyn Allahyarian (Norwell, Mass.) turned aside ten shots for the Bears.

The Bears (1-2) are back in action on Tuesday night at seven when they host Salve Regina University.  Wellesley entertains Wesleyan University on Wednesday afternoon at 4:30.