Reid Leads Blue Field Hockey Past Clark, 5-0

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- In her final regular season home game, senior Whitney Reid led the Wellesley College field hockey team to a 5-0 victory over Clark in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) finale for both teams.

Reid tallied a goal and an assist, as Wellesley (10-8, 5-3 NEWMAC), clinched a spot in the upcoming NEWMAC Tournament. With the loss, Clark (9-7, 2-6 NEWMAC) sees it's 2011 season come to an end.

The Blue broke a scoreless tie in the 25th minute as first-year Lallie Lukens scored off of a rebounded shot to make it 1-0 Wellesley. Reid pushed the advantage to 2-0 after collecting a loose ball in front of the cage and sending it in for the score.

Wellesley led 2-0 at the half, outshooting the Cougars 10-6, while holding a 6-3 edge in penalty corners.

In the second half, Wellesley tacked on three more scores, setting the final to 5-0. First-year Nathalie Gruet notched her 11th goal of the season in the 39th minute, scoring off of a pass from Reid. Sophomore Alex Azzi made it 4-0 Blue, scoring on a feed from Lukens. Rounding out the Wellesley scoring, first-year Allie Farber scored her first career goal in the 62nd minute.

Clark had two great scoring opportunities in the contest. The first of which came in the 19th minute when junior standout Mel Melkonian had a breakway that pulled the Blue keeper out of position. However, Wellesley's Kaitlyn Kirkaldy recorded a defensive save on Melkonian's attempt, keeping the game scoreless. 

The Cougars also threatened late in the game, racking up four corners in a three-minute span. Clark was able get get off six shots over that time, but several key blocks from the Blue defense, as well as two saves from back-up keeper Becky Hamilton preserved the shutout.

In goal for the Blue, starter Brit Mscisz made four saves in 62 minutes of work, while Hamilton added two stops in eight minutes. For Clark, Jordannah Saunders made five saves in the first 62 minutes of play, while Kate McGrath played the final eight minutes without a stop. 

Wellesley will await seedings for the upcoming NEWMAC Tournament. Due to several suspended games, final seeds have not yet been determined. A #2 seed for the Blue would mean a first-round bye, while a #3 seed would mean Wellesley will host a quarterfinal game on Tuesday at 3:00pm.

The Springfield-Mount Holyoke game was suspended with 12:37 to play and Mount Holyoke leading 1-0. The game will be resumed tomorrow afternoon. If the Lyons hold on for the win, Wellesley will be the #3 seed and will host the TBD #6 seed. If Springfield comes back to win, Wellesley will be the #2 seed and will have a first-round bye.

Field Hockey Senior Day

Before the game, Wellesley honored Whitney Reid, a biological sciences major from Bensalem, Pennsylvania.

A team captain for the Blue, she has been an important member of the Wellesley field hockey program for the past four years. In her tenure, Whitney's teams have amassed a NEWMAC record of 20-12. In 2009, she played a significant role in helping the team win the NEWMAC regular season championship and in 2008, was part of the NEWMAC runner-up team. In her career in Blue, Whitney has amassed 15 goals and 17 assists for a total of 47 points.