Seahawk comeback falls just short on senior day

MIDDLETOWN, R.I. – Salve Regina's second half comeback on senior day fell just short as Gordon College defeated the Seahawks 4-3 in Commonwealth Coast Conference field hockey action, Saturday afternoon.

Salve Regina slipped to 8-10 on the year and 6-6 in the conference while Gordon moves to 15-5 on the season and 10-2 in the CCC.

Four different Fighting Scots scored in the opening half to give Gordon a 4-0 lead at the intermission. Junior Brittany Hawkins (Hampstead, N.H.) got the visitors on the board first with a hard shot from the top of the circle 12:53 into the opening half.

Just over 16 minutes later, junior Courtney Scott (Herndon, Pa.) pushed the lead to 2-0 for Gordon with a shot through the defenders to beat the Salve Regina goalie to her left. Classmate Gayle Watson (Harare, Zimbabwe) scored with just under 10 minutes left in the half off a penalty corner to increase the lead to 3-0. 

Junior Grace Fabry (Escondido, Calif.) scored the eventual game-winner with 38 seconds left in the first off a pass from senior Kelly Linehan (White Plains, N.Y.).

Senior Heather Kapatoes (Hopedale, Mass.) kicked off the Salve Regina come back five minutes into the second half off a pass from sophomore Julie Grover (Cotuit, Mass.). Kapatoes took a quick pass from Grover in front of the cage and beat the Fighting Scots goalie to her right. Grover added a goal of her own to cut the Gordon lead in half, 4-2, with 14 minutes left to play.

Junior Alexandria Rizzo (Hopedale, Mass.) got the Seahawks within one goal as she dribbled through the defense to net her seventh goal of the season with four minutes left to play.

The Seahawks earned two penalty corners in the final two minutes but could not find the game's equalizer and fell, 4-3, to Gordon.

Salve Regina was led by Grover with a goal and assist while junior goalie Murphy McCann (Westerly, R.I.)  made four saves in the loss for the Seahawks.

Gordon's goalkeepers' senior Anna Bury (Huntington, Md.) and freshman Shannon Hicks (Scarborough, Maine) split time in the cage for the Fighting Scots. Bury made five saves in the win while Hicks stopped four shots and allowed all three Salve Regina goals.

The loss eliminates Salve Regina from postseason contention.