The DePauw field hockey team travelled to Gambier, Ohio this weekend to face Kenyon College (1-3), its first North Coast Athletic Conference opponent and the first for DePauw athletics as a whole. The Tigers scored a pair of goals in the second half and won the game 2-0. DePauw improved to 2-1 overall.
"We came in with a pretty good attitude," said senior forward Kimberly Trainor. "Our defense played great, but we need to work on finishing our goal opportunities."
DePauw outshot Kenyon 25-2, including a 17-0 edge in the second half. The Tigers also held a 12-0 advantage in penalty corners. Freshmen goalkeeper Maggie Steele recorded the shutout in goal.
"There were some frustrations in the first half," said sophomore defender Maddie Lee. "We have a good offense, sometimes we just have difficulty sprinting to be at that next pass."
After the team battled through a scoreless first half, junior Margaret Ellis put the Tigers on the board with her team-leading fourth goal of the season. Freshman Maggie Campbell followed up Ellis' goal with her first collegiate score.
"The freshmen are awesome," Trainor said. "It's great having these new personalities on the team."
The freshmen are adjusting well and already contributing to the team's performance on the field. Freshmen Grace Fisher, Paige Henry, Steele and Campbell are all making starts and coming off the bench in critical minutes for the Tigers.
"We have a lot of strong freshmen, but they go through at lot of adjustments from high school to college," Lee said.
The amount of talent on the roster, both starting and on the bench, has impressed Trainor.
"This is the most stacked team I've ever played for," Trainor said. "We have no weak links. Every girl on the bench could come in and play with the same amount of energy."
With Ellis and Trainor up front, junior Caroline Torie and sophomore Chelsea Cutler have been pacing the offense by holding the ball in the opponent's side of the field.
The team still needs to adjusting to playing in a new conference, as the Tigers were surprised by Kenyon's intensity.
"We knew we had to answer back and set the pace," Trainor said. "Teams in our new conference are going to be extremely competitive."
The Tigers play their next game today at Earlham College (1-2) at 5 p.m.