Golden Bears Fall to Smith in Non-Conference Action, 5-1

Clifford scores second goal of the season in loss

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (September 25, 2018) – The Western New England University field hockey team fell 5-1 to Smith College in non-conference action on Tuesday evening at Smith's Turf Field.

Top Performers
Sophomore Haley Daigneault (Longmeadow, Mass.) tallied her fifth goal of the season to lead the Western New England offense, while senior goalkeeper Dana Dufour (Gloucester, Mass.) made ten saves in the cage.

Smith junior Morgan Handwerger and sophomore Bryn Murray (Glastonbury, Conn.) paced a balanced Pioneer offense that featured five different goal scorers. Both players recorded a goal and an assist.

Game Review
Daigneault put the Golden Bears in front with the help of an assist from senior Halle Harvey (Millers Falls, Mass.) 13:09 into the contest, but Smith took control from there.

Murray scored the equalizer just over a minute later, and sophomore Jenna Tampon (Oceanside, Calif.) gave the Pioneers the lead at the 19:17 mark. Smith took a 3-1 lead into the break as Murray set up Handwerger for a goal with ten minutes remaining before intermission.

The Pioneers tacked on two more goals in the second period courtesy of senior Bayleigh Bogan (Encinitas, Calif.) and sophomore Maura McGowan (Wall Township, N.J.) to extend the final margin to 5-1.  

Notes
• Dufour reached the 10-save mark for the second time this season, after recording 21 against Springfield College on September 5.
• A strong Smith defensive effort limited the Golden Bears to three shots in the contest.

Up Next
Western New England (2-6) returns home on Thursday to host Mount Holyoke, while Smith (5-3) travels to Cambridge, Mass. to face MIT on Saturday.