BRYN MAWR, Pa. – The Owls field hockey team took to Applebee Field one more time in 2021 on Wednesday, as Bryn Mawr welcomed Tri-College rival Swarthmore to campus for one last home tilt. In a back-and-forth match between two evenly-matched programs battling to keep their playoff hopes alive, it was Swarthmore who ultimately came away with the victory. The Garnet got a goal early in the third period from Martina Kampel and were able to withstand a late charge from the Owls to take a 1-0 win on the day. Maggie Titus made six strong saves in the cage for Bryn Mawr, while Emily Hapgood made an incredible defensive save for the Garnet to help the visitors take the shutout win.

The Owls got the first offensive chance of the game midway through the first quarter, and it proved to be a great one. After some extended offensive pressure, Bryn Mawr earned a penalty corner and sent Ryann McManus to insert the ball. The senior sent a pass to the top and then the ball was sent back to the near wing for Izzy Robinson-Cloete. She set up for a hard, low shot towards the cage, but Hazel Miller got in front of the Swarthmore goaltender and deflected the ball high and towards the top of the netting. With the Owls seemingly headed for a 1-0 lead early, Garnet midfielder Emily Hapgood reached her stick up and batted the ball out of the air right on the endline. Swarthmore was ultimately able to clear the danger and reset, shutting down the early opportunity from Bryn Mawr.

The visitors would get a couple cracks at the cage themselves just a couple minutes later, but on the second penalty corner opportunity, the Owls cleared their own end immediately, leading to a partial breakaway for Novy Goetgeluk. The first-year carried possession all the way through the midfield and into the right side of the circle before ultimately firing a hard shot on cage. However, Swarthmore's Aron Lankford shut her pads and managed to stop the effort, again preserving the shutout to that point.

Those chances proved to be the best opportunities for the Owls in the entire first half. The second quarter was a much more tense affair, with both sides battling for opportunities in the midfield. Bryn Mawr got one penalty corner in the frame, and Maggie Titus was forced into one more save by Swarthmore, but in the end the teams headed to the halftime break with the score still tied at 0-0.

In the third quarter, it was Swarthmore who came out with a renewed vigor and intensity, setting the visitors up with a few chances right out of the gate. The Garnet would force Titus into another save just over a minute into the third period, and then a penalty corner a few minutes later proved to be the decisive moment in the game. Chelsea Semper inserted the ball up top to Kampel, who possessed and curled to her right to find space. The Swarthmore player fired a rocket of a shot that sailed past Titus and into the back of the net about midway up the cage.

Kampel would get off another shot later in the period, but Titus made the stop on that one, sending the teams into the final quarter with Swarthmore still holding a narrow advantage. The Owls pressed hard to find an equalizer, and got their best – and ultimately only – chance about midway through the quarter. After a foul in the circle, Bryn Mawr got one last penalty corner and managed to get the ball up top to Courtney Cutone. She fired a shot on goal that Lankford was able to save. The rebound bounced to Sara Rilatt though, and the senior defender tried to get off a shot of her own. However, the Swarthmore defense got to her too fast, blocking the attempt immediately. That would prove to be the final offensive opportunity for the Owls, and Swarthmore managed to hold on for the 1-0 win.

The Owls will get one more chance to get in the win column this Saturday when they travel to Baltimore for a major matchup. Bryn Mawr will face off against second-ranked Johns Hopkins, who are 16-0 so far this season. Game time against the Blue Jays on Saturday is set for 5:00 PM.