NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The 2015 Yale field hockey team saved its best for last. The Bulldogs scored a season high six goals Saturday afternoon at Johnson Field to beat Brown 6-2 in the season finale. The offensive outburst included a pair of goals from sophomore forward/midfielder Carol Middough and three assists for sophomore midfielder/forward Katie Smith. In addition to picking up the decisive win the Bulldogs also honored their two seniors -- back Noelle Villa, who scored one of Yale's goals, and midfielder Nicole Wells, who had an assist.

"We spent the earlier part of the year focusing on the defensive part of our game, and in the last half of the season we have spent more time working on our attacking play," said Pam Stuper, Yale's Caroline Ruth Thompson '02 Head Coach of Field Hockey. "A lot of extra work paid off today."

This was the most goals Yale has scored in a game since a 6-0 win vs. Sacred Heart Sept. 7, 2013. After controlling play but coming up empty on five penalty corners in the first 20 minutes of the game, the Bulldogs' big day got rolling with a long-distance shot from Middough that eluded Brown goalie Katie Hammaker at 11:31. Less than four minutes later, Villa scored on a corner after Wells inserted to sophomore back Kiwi Comizio.

Yale's identical twins then upped the lead to 3-0 at 31:17, as a nice feed from Katie Smith to her sister sophomore midfielder/forward Lily Smith in transition enabled Lily Smith to deposit her first career goal. Just over a minute later, on a penalty corner, Middough took a feed from Comizio on a corner and extended Yale's lead to 4-0 with a goal. That was her ninth goal of the year, the most by a Yale player since the team's Ivy League Championship season of 2011.

"In some of our games this year Carol has had to play more of a defensive role, and didn't have the opportunity to score as much," said Stuper. "In the games where we have been able to put her in a position to be more attacking, she has been dangerous."

The shutout bid for Yale junior goalie Emilie Katz ended when a shot by Brown midfielder Alexis Miller was accidentally deflected in by a Yale player at 38:50 -- part of an opening four minutes of the second that saw the Bears generate four penalty corners. After withstanding that onslaught, Yale pulled further ahead at 59:59. After her shot was denied by Hammaker, Katie Smith kept the ball alive for freshman forward Brooke Reese and Reese knocked in her second goal of the season -- on her third shot of the season.

"Brooke is a smart player, and she gets herself in the right position," said Stuper. "She tracked that ball very well, and absolutely has made the most of her opportunities this year."

Katie Smith also assisted on Yale's final goal of the day and the season, by freshman forward/midfielder Katerina Toffoloni at 64:02. For the season as a whole, Yale's freshman and sophomore classes wound up accounting for 18 of the team's 20 goals (90 percent).

Forward Hannah Rogers scored with 3:01 to play for Brown (7-10, 1-6 Ivy League), but that did little to mute the celebration for Yale (3-14, 1-6 Ivy League) as a steal by Comizio in the final seconds helped seal the victory. Katz ended up with 12 saves for the game and 182 saves for the season -- currently second in the nation, and 67 more than any other Ivy goalie. She also has a league-best .791 save percentage, 81 percentage points better than any other goalie in the league.

Getting such a big offensive output in the final game certainly provides a glimpse of the near future for the Bulldogs, as the freshman and sophomore classes combined for five goals and five assists in the finale. Just as importantly, it provides a proper send-off for Villa and Wells, two of the program's stalwarts over the past four seasons.

"In our pre-game meeting we talked about the team having the desire and dedication to play the best that we can, to give it their best shot to send Nicole and Noelle out with a win," said Stuper. "This was a very young team this year, and Nicole and Noelle can feel like they have been part of laying a foundation for future success. I'm proud of them for that."

Report by Sam Rubin '95 (sam.rubin@yale.edu), Yale Sports Publicity