NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- A pair of penalty corner goals made the difference on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Johnson Field as Fairfield edged Yale 2-1. The Stags' corner unit delivered twice in a span of just over two minutes early in the third quarter, and Fairfield held on for the win after a goal by forward Lena Ansari pulled Yale within one in the fourth quarter. 
 
The game was a defensive struggle for most of the afternoon, with Yale (1-1, 0-0 Ivy League) led by eight saves from sophomore goalkeeper Luanna Summer. Fairfield (2-2, 0-0 NEC) countered with a tenacious defense that limited the Bulldogs to seven shots -- a far cry from the 30 they got in Friday's season-opening 6-0 win vs. Merrimack. The Stags are just two years removed from advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals and winning 19 games. They went 5-2 in an abbreviated campaign this spring.
 
"Fairfield's defense was very strong," said Pam Stuper, Yale's Caroline Ruth Thompson '02 Head Coach of Field Hockey. "It was hard for us to create opportunities and capitalize on them. We battled back to get within one, but just didn't have enough chances. We'll take away some lessons from playing a very good defensive team."
 
Ansari's goal came after a Fairfield player accidentally deflected a nice cross from first-year forward Ellie Barlow, one of 11 Yale players who had no varsity game experience prior to this weekend. Fairfield goalie Zoe Rosen denied an opportunity for sophomore forward/midfielder Katie So in the final four minutes to keep the Bulldogs from tying the score.
 
This weekend's split marked the first games Yale had played since a 4-1 win vs. Brown Nov. 9, 2019. The Bulldogs now head to Lafayette for their first road game Friday.