MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The No. 10 ranked Wesleyan field hockey team is officially headed back to the postseason for the second straight season, as the Cardinals locked in their NESCAC Tournament berth in a 4-2 win over Colby on Saturday from Hicks Field. With the win, Wesleyan (10-4, 5-4 NESCAC) records their first 10-win season since 2010 and do so in front of a strong home crowd on Senior Day for the Cardinals.
 
In what was the final regular season home game for the Cardinals' six seniors and one graduate student, it's tough to envision a more-perfect outcome in the contest as a senior either scored or assisted on all four of the Wesleyan goals on Saturday. None more significant than Sydney Atwood '25 scoring for the first time in her career midway through the third quarter to complete a string of three unanswered goals as the Cardinals came back from 2-1 down in this one.
 
Georgia Adams '26 made a bit of history on Saturday as the junior forward fired in three goals and one assist, accounting for all four Cardinal goals, while recording her first career hat trick. Adams becomes just the second Cardinal since 2012 to net a hat trick, while this bumps her season goal total up to 12. The assist is Adams' fifth of the season, setting a new single-season career-high.
 
Wesleyan jumped out to a 1-0 lead seven minutes into play, taking advantage of what was a third penalty corner in a series of 14 seconds. The ball came to Imani Ochieng '25 on the insert who passed to Adams on the right wing. With time to shoot, Adams blasted a shot that deflected off the stick of a Colby player and inside the left post.
 
Colby responded before the end of the quarter as the Mules scored on a penalty corner with 14 seconds left in the frame. Bridget Everett slammed home a shot that caromed off the foot of a Cardinal player at the far post.
 
After an uneventful second quarter that featured just one shot and one penalty corner, the Mules took the lead 1:23 into the second half as Christina Sweeney received a pass from Casey Winslow, turned to her left and fired in a shot past Audrey Pace '26 that made it 2-1 Colby.
 
The response, however, was immediate as Adams scored again off a penalty corner. This time the ball came to Helen Deretchin '25 off the insert who swept a pass to the far side for Adams who mishit her shot attempt, but the bouncing ball proved difficult for Colby's Leah Anderson to handle in cage as the shot hit the back of the cage as it was a tied score just 35 seconds after Sweeney's go-ahead goal.
 
The Cardinal flurry continued just 43 seconds later, as Adams completed her hat trick of penalty corner goals to put Wesleyan ahead for good. The insert off the corner came to Sydney Cameron '26 who passed to her left for Ochieng who sent a pass to Kenzie Kelly '25 on the near wing. Kelly sent a pass to the far post for Adams who laid her stick down for a deflected goal, putting Wesleyan back out in front.
 
The barrage of goals continued just under four minutes later, as again a penalty corner goal for the Cardinals saw Adams blast a ball that was deflected in front by Atwood to give the Cardinals a two-goal advantage after trailing 2-1 just five minutes prior.
 
Wesleyan's defense dominated the remainder of play, holding Colby without a shot following the Sweeney goal and without a corner in the entire second half.
 
Pace played 45 minutes, making one save, before giving way for Athena Vadnal '25 who played out the entire fourth quarter in net.
 
This marks Adams' fourth multi-goal game of the season and the eighth of her career. Adams has 12 goals through 14 goals, putting her in a tie for third-most in the NESCAC, while her 29 points ranks fourth in the league.
 
The Cardinals close out the regular season on Tuesday with a 4 PM start at Connecticut College. A win over the Camels or a Bates loss to Colby on Tuesday would clinch the #4 seed and a home Quarterfinal round game in the NESCAC Tournament against the Bobcats next Saturday.