Stockton, Calif. – Pacific field hockey opened up their season with a valiant effort but took the loss against No. 3 Connecticut Sunday.  The Tigers fell behind 5-0 to start the game, then got two goals back to make the final score 5-2. Pacific would end up with eight shots to UConn's 16.  Marguerite van Wyk scored a goal and added an assist in her first game as a Tiger.

Despite the loss, Head Coach Andy Smith was happy with the team's performance, saying that "we dominated the beginning and dominated the end [of the game] and we're getting better every day."

Connecticut picked up five corners in the first half to help them along to their victory.  Amanda Collins scored the first two goals of the game, with one coming 19 minutes in off a rebound and another scored at 28:13 on a breakaway that Pacific's Laura Pujade got a piece of but not quite enough.  Pujade made six saves on the day before Jessie Niccum came on in relief and stopped both shots she faced.

Another Connecticut goal put Pacific down 3-0 at the half as Anna Middendorf scored for the Huskies off a penalty corner.  Two more goals for the Huskies came in the first ten minutes of the second half, with Middendorf adding another and Casey Umstead scoring as well.

The Tigers got on the board with a flurry of offensive activity.  Van Wyk scored her first goal as a Tiger on Pacific's first corner of the second half.  Hayley Kilfoil sent it in to Hannah Tvergyak, who settled it down and gave van Wyk a dangerous opportunity.  The goal came when van Wyk blasted the ball high over the goalies outstretched stick.

Rylee Comeau scored her first goal of the year just two minutes later.  Van Wyk let loose with a sharp-angle shot from the right side.  The ball bounced off the goalie's pads to Comeau in front.  The sophomore calmly tapped the ball home to make it 5-2.  Van Wyk's assist gave her three points in her first-ever collegiate appearance.

"We've got really balanced scoring, we've got four or five players that can have multiple goal games," said Smith about the team's spread-out scoring.  "I think we saw today that if we play like we did for 40 minutes today all year we'll win a lot of games.

Next on the docket is a home game for Pacific, as they face off with Kent State on September 5 at noon at the Pacific Field Hockey Turf.  The Tigers head on a four-game road trip after that before returning home September 18.

Make sure to follow Pacific field hockey on Twitter with the username @PacificTigersFH and on Instagram at pacifictigersfh.