FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- The end result may not have been what Head Coach Jackie Kane had hoped for, but the way the Fairfield University field hockey team finished was certainly encouraging for her. The 23th-ranked Stags fell to Northeastern University by a 6-4 score at University Field this afternoon, ending the team's seven-game winning streak that lasted nearly a month.

The six goals were not an indictment on the Stags defense today as the unit faced the nation's top scoring offense which reached six goals for the fourth time this season and for the third time in as many games. But even though Fairfield found itself down by a 4-1 score late in the third quarter, the Stags fought back and never relented in its pressure and attack. 

Northeastern scored six times on its 14 shots, a high percentage even for its potent offense. The Huskies grabbed the lead just three minutes into game when Lauren Rowe, ranked second in the nation for scoring, dribbled the ball to the left side of the circle and sent a cross to Camille O'Conor who one-timed the pass into the fair corner. That goal would hold up until the end of the first half when a well-executed give-and-go resulted in a 2-on-1 breakaway for Northeastern, a play set up by Alli Meehan and finished by Kasidy Anderson.

Trailing 2-0 at the half, Fairfield came out in the second half with more aggression and seemed to find a rhythm against the Huskies defense. Despite the better play, the Stags found themselves down by three goals midway through the third quarter when Kasidy Anderson took a shot that was turned away but the ball found its way back to her stick. Anderson did not miss on her second chance, pushing the ball past the outstretched goalkeeper.

Fairfield picked up some momentum about a minute later when some nifty stick work from Gabby Saxon allowed her to bring the ball into the circle before releasing a pass to her open teammate Madison Hoskins, who sent the ball to the far corner of the goal. The swing was short lived however only one minute went by before Lauren Rowe was granted a penalty stroke which she converted into a 4-1 lead at the 5:30 mark. The Stags were not done thought because they earned a penalty corner with no time on the clock which Julianna Kratz turned into the team's second goal, cutting the lead to 4-2.

Northeastern was relentless at the start of the fourth quarter and managed to find the back of the net two more times in the opening seven minutes of the final period. Down 6-2, Fairfield made yet another comeback bid and made the game more interesting with a pair of goals in a six-minute span. The first goal came when Malen Iglesias sent a pass to the far post which Danielle Profita redirected to the upper corner of the goal to bring the score to 6-3. A few minutes later, Saxon made another strong play with her stick and sent a perfect cross to Emma Matlach, who was camped in the center of the circle. The junior quickly scored the game's final goal with 1:32 on the clock.

"Once we got our momentum going, we were a much better team," Kane said. "It took us too long to get our game started but I am proud of the team for taking a setback but never giving up. That's something that we have emphasized this year and it's good to see that they took that to heart. We are disappointed but hopefully that will enhance our focus and bring more enthusiasm to us as we get ready for the conference."

The Stags will start Northeast Conference play next week when they host Sacred Heart University on Friday afternoon. The game is scheduled for a 4 pm start.