The field hockey team regained its winning form with a 2-1 victory yesterday afternoon over Colgate at Marsha Dodson Field. Junior midfielder Mattie Prodanovic scored the winning goal on a penalty corner in the 61st minute.

The decisive goal was assisted by junior attack Catie De Stio and senior back Natalie Appleton. De Stio leads the team with seven goals and five assists.

“The corner was really helpful as it pulls the defense out, causing a numerical disadvantage and unclogging the area,” said junior midfielder Kate Thompson.

The goal was the Red’s offensive response to Colgate’s goal from a penalty corner at the end of the first half.

“This game was a challenge,” sophomore goalkeeper Alex Botte said. “Even after they scored at the end of the first half, our team picked it up for the next half. The offense played with more intensity.”

“It took a huge team effort,” Thompson said. “We were able to compete against a good team and we stayed composed.”

“We were able to stay positive and keep up the on-field communications,” Prodanovic said.

After a stunning defeat on Saturday, the Red recovered nicely against Colgate with a renewed effort. Freshman attack Kat DiPastina scored off her own rebound in the 19th minute to grab the early lead. Prodigious Prodanovic: Junior midfielder Mattie Prodanovic scored the game-winner against Colgate.

“Despite our loss on Saturday, we stepped up as a team,” Thompson said. “The biggest thing this game was we were able to move forward.”

“We were able to stay positive throughout the game,” Prodanovic said.

The team dominated offensively by managing to get 27 shots against Colgate’s six shots. However, Colgate’s senior goalkeeper Sarah Pedersen made 12 saves against the offensive pressure.

The Red clamped down defensively in the second period after Prodanovic scored the tiebreaking goal as Colgate only managed one shot. Cornell’s senior goalkeeper Melanie Jue made three saves. One of the saves included Colgate’s last opportunity on a penalty corner 10 minutes before the end of the game.

“Even though the clock was ticking down, our strength came from holding the ball well and using each other. We stayed composed,” Thompson said.

The players attributed their late defensive success to experience.

“Our team has gone into overtime so many times this season that we’re used to this,” sophomore midfielder Olivia Boyd said. “We need to play the full 70 minutes and keep our heads in the game.”

“We’ve done this many times. We’ve practiced it a lot,” Prodanovic said.

Although the team lost its overall undefeated record, the victory ensured that the Red remained undefeated at home.

“We wanted to stay undefeated at home,” Thompson said. “We’re taking one game at a time.”