MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Playing a home playoff game for the first time since 2005, the fans on-hand were gifted a thrilling back-and-forth contest but in the end, the Wesleyan field hockey team suffered a defeat by the finest of margins, losing to five-seed Bates in a penalty shootout. The Cardinals (11-5) now await news of a potential NCAA Tournament bid while the Bobcats (11-5) advance to face top-seed Middlebury in the NESCAC Semifinal next Saturday.
 
It was advantage Wesleyan in the initial best-of-five shootout. Bates missed two of their first three attempts, while Wesleyan made their first two tries, grabbing a 2-1 lead courtesy of Ava Galdenzi '24, G'25 and Sydney Cameron '26. Needing just one goal to clinch the win, the Cardinals missed three straight tries, while Bates converted to tie things up at two apiece. With the tally knotted at two following the best-of-five, the shootout moved to sudden death.
 
Both teams missed their first attempts in the sudden death session and after Wesleyan missed for the fifth straight attempt, Anna Lindeis notched the game-winner for Bates with less than one second left on the eight-second shootout timer.
 
Audrey Pace '26 stood tall in net throughout, keeping Bates off the scoreboard in the first quarter with a big save on Lucy Norris on what was the first penalty corner of the game nearly 11 minutes into the action.
 
The Bobcats were first to get on the scoreboard as Maria Femia connected on a feed from Anna Lindeis on a penalty corner two minutes into the second quarter.
 
Wesleyan was quick to respond as Galdenzi scored on what was the first Cardinal penalty corner of the game just 1:32 minutes after the Femia goal. Galdenzi inserted to Helen Deretchin '25 who wound up and fired the ball back towards Galdenzi who slammed in the equalizer.
 
The Cardinals had three penalty corner chances in the final 2:30 of the second quarter, but couldn't land a shot on-target on any of the three attempts as the score was tied at 1-1 heading into halftime.
 
The second half was a defensive struggle, as Wesleyan generated just one shot in the final 30 minutes of regulation, while Pace made stops on all four Bates shots on-goal to send the game into overtime.
 
Deretchin had the first major scoring chance in the first 7-on-7 overtime period as her attempt on-target was denied by Bates goalkeeper Ava Donohue. Then the Bobcats had a prime chance as the Cardinals picked up a pair of green cards, leaving them with just four field players. Bates took advantage, generating a penalty corner, but Pace was there to make a terrific save on Anna Cote, keeping the game tied.
 
The second overtime started just like the first, with Donohue making a save, then with 1:48 remaining it was Haley Dwight who made the play of the game for Bates. Teddy Tolbert '28 took a shot that deflected off a sprawling Donohue and towards the cage. Dwight tried to secure the loose ball, but it kept rolling, so she dived at the last second and was able to poke it to the right and out of harm's way, just before it would have crossed the goal line for the game-winner.
 
Pace finished the day with eight saves for the Cardinals while Donohue's two saves were both in the overtime periods.