The Bison field hockey team split their games in Maryland this past weekend. On Sept. 28, the Bison fell to Patriot League opponent American University, 3-1. However, the Orange and Blue rebounded to secure a 3-0 victory against Towson on Sept. 29.

Emily Doyle ’22 scored the Orange and Blue’s lone goal in the game against American. Doyle’s rebound goal came early in the second half after Brittany Willwerth ’20 took a shot that ricocheted off the Eagles’ goalkeeper. The Bison goal was not enough to top the Eagles, as their three first-half goals led them to the win.

“We definitely learned a lot this weekend from both games. American scored some early goals that caught us off guard,” Sarah Dimock ’21 said. “We kept fighting until the end of the game, but I think we learned our lesson heading into upcoming games. We worked together as a team and tried our best to ramp up the energy, so I’m excited to see us pick up where we left off when we play Villanova.”

Bison attacker Leah Fogelsanger ’21 led the team with two shots on the day, both attempted in the second quarter. Goalkeeper Olivia Harris ’20 tallied five saves on the day. This loss was the Bison’s first in Patriot League play.

The Orange and Blue were able to bounce back to a 3-0 victory against Towson the next day, with Doyle leading the team with two goals on the day.

Willwerth assisted the first goal of the day a mere 12 minutes into the game when Doyle was able to slip the ball past the keeper to open up a Bison lead.

Kaelyn Long ’21 scored the second goal of the day in the second half, with the Bison netting this one off of a penalty corner. This marks Long’s first goal of the season. Doyle scored her final goal at the end of the third quarter to top off the Orange and Blue victory.

“Even though we had a Patriot League loss this weekend, we were able to overcome that and improve as a team the next day,” Doyle said. “Our play increased both as a unit and individually.”

Harris led the defense to the win with three saves on the day, collecting her third shutout of the season. Doyle now leads the team with five goals on the year so far.

The Orange and Blue next travel to Villanova to face the Wildcats on Sunday, Oct. 6 at 12 p.m.