PHILADELPHIA -- After allowing a pair of goals in the first 10 minutes Saturday at Penn, the Yale field hockey team settled in and held the Quakers scoreless for nearly 50 minutes. A goal by sophomore forward Lena Ansari early in the fourth quarter pulled the Bulldogs within one. But Penn tacked on one more goal, with 2:53 to play, and held on for the 3-1 win at Ellen Vagelos Field.

"We played three really good quarters," said Pam Stuper, Yale's Caroline Ruth Thompson '02 Head Coach of Field Hockey. "There were a couple of things tactically that we needed to change, and we did. After we scored it felt like we were going to score again, but ultimately we did not take advantage of enough of our opportunities."
 
Yale (6-8, 2-3 Ivy League) had won two games in a row with critical fourth-quarter goals, but a slow start Saturday proved too much for the Bulldogs to overcome. Penn (6-6, 3-2 Ivy League) got a goal from midfielder Meghan Ward 35 seconds in, then one from forward/midfielder Allison Kuzyk at 9:59 to take an early lead. 
 
The Bulldogs allowed five Penn shots in the first quarter, but limited the Quakers to just five more the rest of the way. They were not able to get on the scoreboard until 47:20, however, when Ansari deflected in a pass from forward/midfielder Ashley Kim. Ansari is now up to 18 points for the season (seven goals, four assists) -- twice as many as she had in her first year. 
 
After Ansari's goal neither team had any shots until the final four minutes, when a pair of penalty corners helped swing momentum back in Penn's favor. On the second, Ward scored again to help put the game out of reach.
 
Sophomore goalkeeper Luanna Summer finished with a pair of saves, while Penn goalie Sabien Paumen made three.
 
Yale hosts Hofstra Sunday at 2:00 p.m. at Johnson Field.