Junior attacker Molly Ford’s five goals last Wednesday helped the Hoyas soar over their first hurdle of the season, subjecting their thirteenth-ranked opponent, Johns Hopkins University, to a humbling 11-6 defeat in front of the Blue Jays’ home crowd.

Going into the match, Head Coach Ricky Fried warned his players of the Blue Jays’ (1-1) high emotion and fast-paced play. The Hoyas (2-0) appear to have heeded Fried’s advice well.

“It’s always nice to beat a quality opponent and do it with your game plan,” Fried said, noting that the Hoyas were careful to play in their own style, and not let the hosts dictate the pace of play.

The early moments of the match, however, did not bode well for Georgetown; Hopkins came out in full force at their home ground, taking just 21 seconds to score the first goal of the match and put their name up on the scoreboard.

The Hoyas, however, were not to be dismayed: “We handled the emotion well,” Fried said. Sure enough, just 3:15 later, the Hoyas equalized with Ford’s first goal of the game, an unassisted shot that could not be stopped by the Hopkins goalkeeper. “We didn’t get caught up in the situation,” Fried said. “We kept playing our game and kept chipping away.”

The Blue Jays could not get a goal in edgewise for the next 14 minutes, as the Hoyas banged in goal after goal; sophomore attacker Jordy Kirr notched three assists and a goal of her own, while Ford scored her second and sophomore attacker Jacqueline Giles recorded a pair to put the Hoyas up 5-1 with 12 minutes left in the half. The Blue Jays managed to score two more goals as the clock wound down, separated by a Hoya goal scored with 9:24 on the clock by sophomore midfielder Logan McCraw, with yet another assist from Kirr. At the halftime whistle, the scoreboard read 6-3 in Georgetown’s favor.

The Hoyas did not let up in the second half, with Ford scoring her hat trick goal less than four minutes into play and her fourth goal two minutes after that. Georgetown played staunch defense, and offensively the attack shot in two more goals for a 10-3 lead. With 7:36 left in the half, Hopkins was finally able to capitalize and get on the scoreboard. However, the Blue Jays were not able to mount any sort of rally. The Hoyas answered in less than 30 seconds, with junior midfielder Emily Bock scoring her first goal of the season and putting the Hoyas back on top by seven. Hopkins was able to tack on two more goals before the last whistle, resulting in an 11-6 final score.

“They [Blue Jays] were more aggressive early on – we were a bit slow – but that changed in the second half. We fought for the draws better,” Fried said.

Ford’s five-goal haul with an assist thrown in on the side earned praise from the coach.

“She is getting a lot of opportunities and making the most of them,” Fried said. “A lot of credit goes to her teammates for finding her and sharing the ball.” Aside from Kirr’s four of assists, junior midfielder Ashby Kaestner contributed a goal and three assists, while senior midfielder Megan Bloomer added a pair of assists. McCraw also displayed scrappy play on the field, leading the Hoyas with four groundball pickups.

The Hoyas’ first matchup against a ranked team measures their level of play and their marked improvements.

“The biggest things that came from practice were effective clearing and handling the pressure on our defensive end,” Fried said. “Also, maintaining our spacing and finishing opportunities.”

The Hoyas took advantage of their opportunities, scoring 11 goals on 26 shots, for a 44 percent shooting percentage. Yet, there is always room for improvement.

“Sometimes we didn’t control the tempo as much as we would have liked,” Fried said, a point that the Hoyas must work on when they host the Denver Pioneers (3-2) this Sunday at noon.

“Denver is a very athletic, physical team,” Fried said. “We can’t get caught up in what they’re doing – we can’t react. We need to focus on what we want to do and stay disciplined.”

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