By Joyce Novacek

Contributing Writer

The field hockey team held its opponents scoreless in two road games over the weekend, defeating Holy Cross 2-0 on Saturday and Harvard 3-0 on Sunday.  The senior class powered the Bison offense—each of the four seniors on the rosters scored a goal—and Kelly Bruvik ’11 scored in each game.

The Bison had a slow offensive start opening Patriot League play against the Crusaders, only taking three shots in the first 35 minutes of play.  The second half began much like the first, but when the Bison drew a penalty corner with about 13 minutes left to play, Christine Weiss ’11 scored the first goal of the game and her fourth of the season.

Only a few minutes later, Bruvik netted a goal that was the final one of the game.  The Orange and Blue defense limited the Crusaders to only three shots.

“This weekend when we played Holy Cross we focused on professionalism and the ability to play through any distractions. We were definitely able to keep composure even when things felt like they were beginning to become frantic,” Morgan Kauffman ’11 said.

Kauffman’s teammate Corinne Raczek ’11 expressed similar thoughts.

“Our mentality was to play with a sense of professionalism this weekend, especially for the Holy Cross game.  We knew it was going to be a game that would test how well we all collectively deal with impediments that could change the outcome of the game,” she said.

The team’s composure continued in Sunday’s game when it traveled to Cambridge to defeat Harvard and earn its fourth shutout of the year, the first time since 1999 that a Bison squad has earned four shutouts in a single season.

Goalkeeper Sarah Zargarpour ’12 started in net and earned her fourth shutout of the year.  With five shutouts in her career, Zargarpour is tied for ninth all-time in Bison field hockey history.

Kauffman scored the Bison’s first goal against the Crimson halfway through the first half.  With less than 10 minutes left in the first frame, Raczek scored her first goal of the season, sending the Bison into halftime with a 2-0 lead.

The Orange and Blue came out strong in the second half, and Bruvik netted her second goal in two days, putting the Bison up 3-0. The Bison out-shot the Crimson 13-8.

“Our defense should be very proud of themselves.  We’ve been gradually improving our defensive efforts and mindset each game.  We definitely should have put in a few more against Holy Cross, but the three goals on Sunday left us feeling a little more satisfied,” Raczek said.

On Saturday, the Bison travel to Easton, Pa. for their second Patriot League match up against Lafayette. They will then return home Sunday to play Columbia.