WASHINGTON, D.C. – The No. 11 Ursinus College field hockey team was unable to hold on to an early lead in a 2-1 setback at Catholic on Wednesday night.
Devon Carroll staked the Bears (9-5) to a first-quarter advantage, but the visitors were undone by a pair of second-quarter goals less than five minutes apart. Despite outshooting Catholic, 5-1, in the second half, Ursinus could not find an equalizer in dropping its non-conference finale.
Ursinus, as it typically does, had full control of the first quarter. Carroll and Gemma Dufoe forced a pair of saves among four corners as the Bears put the Cardinals (9-7) under fire. The pressure paid off with 2:21 to go in the frame as Carroll scored following another penalty corner, moving within one of the team lead with her 11th goal of the season.
Catholic flipped the field in the second period, leveling the contest with 6:19 on the clock before Katie Anderson fired the hosts ahead for good with 1:55 to go before half.
The Bears regained control after the break, but a game-tying goal never came. They earned one last corner in the final minute of regulation, but Erin Saybolt saw her last-ditch effort saved.
Carroll had half of the eight shots for Ursinus, which posted an 8-6 edge in that department in addition to a massive 11-1 disparity in corners. Addie Frey made two saves in the cage, and Maysen Elliott finished with four for the Cardinals.
Ursinus returns to Snell Field for its home finale on Saturday, when the Bears pay tribute to their seniors before a critical showdown with No. 9 Johns Hopkins.