Smithers Produces Lasers First 2011 Win in OT against Wheelock

Boston, MA-  Sophomore forward Sam Smithers (Yarmouth, MA) tallied her first collegiate goal with just 20 seconds exhausted in overtime to produce a 2-1 Lasell College field hockey win over Wheelock College on Thursday night.  With the victory, the Lasers improve to 1-3 in the season while the Wildcats fall at 0-6.

Freshman midfielder Meaghan Collier (Sidney, ME) came away with three points in the contest, assisting on the game-winner and scoring the game tying goal in the 55^th minute.  Christine Thornton (Canton, MA), the Lasers senior goalie, recorded the win with six stops in 70 minutes and 20 seconds in the net.  Freshman forward Taylor Hulitzky (Medway, MA) added the assist on Collier's goal, good for one point.

It was a rainy evening of field hockey at Winsor Field that left the teams in a 0-0 stalemate through the entire 35 minutes of the first half.  The Wildcats eventually scored first, five minutes into the second frame, when Despina Savvoulides (Norwalk, CT) broke free from the rest and ripped a shot into the left corner of the net. 

Lasell would even the score 15 minutes later when Hulitzky managed to rein in the ball during a scramble in front of Wheelock's net and passed off to Collier to force overtime.

Just a few seconds into the extra session Smithers got her first chance at the net, but Wheelock's keeper Michelle Greene (Mansfield, MA) was up for the challenge deflecting the shot away.  Collier, however,  gathered the missed shot and passed off to Smithers for her second chance, which ended the game, 2-1, in Lasell advantage.

Lasell returns home on Saturday, September 17^th for their first North Atlantic Conference (NAC) contest of the season against two-time defending NAC champion Husson College.  The Eagles were selected as the no. 1 pick in the conference again this season and will face off with the Lasers at 1:00 p.m. on Grellier Field.