MANCHESTER, N.H. – Junior Kristina Katsikis (Hanover, Mass.) and sophomore Elizabeth Sears (Danvers, Mass.) each scored goals, but the Saint Anselm College field hockey team dropped a heartbreaking 3-2 decision to seventh-ranked Merrimack College in overtime Saturday afternoon at Grappone Stadium.
The Hawks fall to 2-6 on the season, including 0-2 in Northeast-10 play, while the Warriors win their eighth straight to improve to 8-1, 2-0. Merrimack had shut out their previous six opponents and had not allowed a goal since Sept. 4, a span of 468:23 coming into the game.
The two teams battled back and forth for most of the first half, until senior Sara Sterling (Mansfield, Mass.) sent a pass from the right side of the field and across the goalmouth to Katsikis, who punched the ball into the back of the cage on the left side, ending Merrimack goalkeeper Kerri Bergquist's shutout streak at 497:53 and giving the Hawks a 1-0 lead with 5:29 to play in the opening half.
The teams went into the break that way, but Merrimack wasted no time getting the equalizer, scoring just 23 seconds into the second half when Jen Otis found the back of the cage.
In the 50th minute, Saint Anselm went back on top by a goal when Sears beat Bergquist to make it 2-1.
The Hawks looked in control down the stretch and were in position to knock off the nationally-ranked Warriors, but with 3:37 to play in regulation, Otis struck again and knotted the game at two.
The Warriors, who outshot the Hawks, 18-10, again wasted no time as the overtime session began, striking just 18 seconds in to steal the win. Otis picked up her third tally of the afternoon off a feed from the conference's leading scorer, April Daugherty.
Junior goalkeeper Megan Sullivan (Braintree, Mass.) matched her season high with 10 saves, while Bergquist stopped four shots.
The Hawks return to action Wednesday, Sept. 28 at 4 p.m. when they play host to fourth-ranked UMass Lowell at Grappone Stadium.
