PHILADELPHIA – Senior captain Gracyn Banks was a force on both ends of the field to guide the University of Pennsylvania field hockey team to its fourth Ivy League victory of the season on Friday night, 1-0, at Columbia.
 
Banks scored the lone goal of the game while registering two defensive saves on the other side of the field, as the Quakers moved to 7-7 for the season.
 
Quaker Notemeal
*Banks' game-winner is her third goal of the season and eighth point, the second most on the team.
 
*With two more defensive saves, Banks brings her season total to five, the best in the Ivy League and a career best.
 
*The goal was scored on a penalty corner, as assists were awarded to Courtney Kenah for the insert and Ashley Wetzel on the lay down. It is the second assist this season for both Quakers.
 
*Sophomore Sabien Paumen earned her seventh win of the season in the cage, making six saves for her third shutout of the season.
 
How It Happened
An evenly matched first quarter had the two squads each send off three shots in the opening 15 minutes. However, the only shot that mattered was the last one by the Quakers in the closing seconds. Earning a penalty corner with seven seconds left on the clock, Kenah placed the insert to the top of the circle where Wetzel settled it. With just seconds left, Banks sent a shot to the top right side of the cage for the eventual game-winner.
 
The Quakers' defense was tested over the next two quarters, seeing eight shots but Paumen and the backline held strong to maintain the clean sheet.
 
In the final quarter, both teams got off two shots, but the score held at 1-0 to give Penn the final decision.
 
Up Next
The Quakers return to Ellen Vagelos Field on Sunday, hosting Temple in the final non-conference match of the season. Start time is set for noon.