DURHAM, N.H. – The California field hockey team opened a crucial weekend with a huge 3-1 road win over New Hampshire on Friday afternoon. The Golden Bears got goals from Bente Baekers and Daniella Rhodes, with Baekers scoring her 100th career goal in the win.  
 
"We went into this knowing we were playing a team sitting atop the conference standings, and knowing we were likely going to see them again next week, the object was less about the outcome and more about playing a complete game and seeing where we are," Donna Fong Director of Field Hockey Shellie Onstead said. "Today is a really great test and I thought we responded beautifully. We started the game a little shaky, giving up an early penalty corner, but as the day went on and we got more and more comfortable you could see us getting stronger. I'm very pleased with the result."
 
Cal (8-7, 4-3 America East) was limited to eight shots on the day but made the most of its chances, scoring three goals on eight attempts. Defensively the Bears were stellar, holding the Wildcats below their season average for goals in a contest. Cal also handed New Hampshire (11-6, 6-2 America East) its first home loss of 2023. 
 
UNH's Tasman Cookman entered the game leading the America East with 18 goals on the year; she was held to just four shots and only one shot on goal. UNH had the early momentum, with Cookman taking three shots early. Keeper Tina Jolly was up to the task, recording three saves in the first quarter to keep the Wildcats off the scoreboard.
 
"I thought the defense came together really nicely today," Onstead said. "I was pleased with Tina's play. She did a really nice job. They did a terrific job of limiting Tamera's (Cookman) chances. She still got loose a few times, like all good forwards do, but Tina was there to pick up the save and our defense did an excellent job of sharing the responsibility of keeping her in check. That was really heartening for me as we get into the tournament playing better and better teams."
 
 
Jolly (8-7) finished the afternoon with six saves on seven shots faced. The lone blemish of the day was a second-quarter goal by UNH's Nicole Poulakis.
 
After a scoreless first period, both teams got on the scoreboard in rapid succession. Baekers scored the game's opening goal in the 20th minute. Less than a minute later UNH got the equalizer on a goal from Poulakis, her 12th of the season.
 
Late in the half, Rhodes got the Bears back out front, scoring her 14th goal on Cal's second penalty corner of the period. She took the feed from Kiki de Bruijne and Cato Geusgens and blasted one to the back of the cage eight seconds before the intermission. Rhodes' goal was the 50th goal scored by the Bears in 2023marking the seventh time in program history that Cal has scored 50 or more goals in a season.
 
Out of the break, both offenses went silent. Cal did not attempt a shot in the third period and the Wildcats could only muster four attempts. In the fourth, Cal quickly regained the momentum. Baekers scored her second of the game off an assist from Rhodes to give Cal a 3-1 lead just 36 seconds into the fourth. From there the Bears' defense took over, holding New Hampshire to just two shots in the period.
 
The two goals by Baekers give her 101 for her career. She scored 86 at Northwestern. It is her 24th career game with at least two goals and fifth this season. She has scored at least one goal in nine of the last 10 contests.
 
"We've deliberately not talked about it," Onstead said of Baeker's chance to score 100 career goals. "I've started treating her like a pitcher with a no-hitter. But of course, it's a topic that has kept coming up all year and the team was teasing her about it a little bit. I was really excited that she got it, and that she got it with us. I feel like now she can relax a little bit and that will make her a little more dangerous."
 
Cal will return to action Sunday when the Bears travel to Orono, Maine, to take on the Maine Black Bears. Sunday's contest has major implications for the America East Tournament. The Bears can finish anywhere from fourth to sixth depending on the result against Maine.
 
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