BU Chills Hartford

by Tristan Hobbes

It was snowing in mid-October.

Despite the wintry weather, senior Farrell McClernon (’10) was able to find the back of the net in the 69th minute to push the Boston University Terriers (6-1-0 AE, 10-5-2) over the Hartford Hawks (0-5-1 AE, 4-10-2), 1-0, at a damp and cold Nickerson Field Sunday afternoon.

The Terriers win, combined with Stony Brook’s 2-0 loss to Albany, put BU back in first place in the conference. BU is now 7-0 at home and with a win in next Sunday’s regular season finale against UMBC, the Terriers would claim their second straight regular season championship and would have home field throughout the playoffs.

Sunday, with the temperature dropping and the rain/snow falling, the Hawks started fast and nearly took an early lead but the BU defense stood strong. Laura Guigli got a shot off inside the 18 that senior goalie Janie Reilly (’10) stopped but the ball got behind her and was about to roll in before senior back Mara Osher (’10) cleared it off the line. Reilly would rob Guigli again later in the half with a diving safe to her right.

“If they put one of those in we’re chasing the game a little bit,” Terriers head coach Nancy Feldman of the two first half chances that were denied by her two seniors. “You get great goal keeping. You get a senior captain on a post that’s calm in a critical moment that gave us time.”

After the three early chances the BU defense clamped down. The Terriers held the Hawks without a shot for over 50 minutes and outshot the visitors 11-1 in the second half. Sophomore Brittany Heist (’12) nearly tied the game with 90 seconds to play in the first half but her header hit the crossbar. Then in the second half, moments after the Terriers had hit the crossbar again, McClernon broke the tie with her fourth goal of the year and third game-winner. Sophomore Jessica Luscinski (’12) played the ball into the box and Hawks goalie Lauren Brodeur couldn’t control it. McClernon was there to knock it into the open net and give her team the lead. It was Luscinski’s 7th assist on the season which is tops in the America East. Reilly finished with four saves to record her sixth clean sheet of the season.

“I thought it was a great team effort,” Feldman said of her team’s crucial America East win.

BU will finish up their non-conference schedule when they host Bryant on Wednesday at 4pm. They close out the regular season next Sunday at home against UMBC.