With a 7-0 loss to the University of Connecticut Saturday, the University of Massachusetts (2-8) field hockey team’s losing streak extended to six games. UConn (6-3) scored five goals in the second period, and goalie Maureen Butler blanked the Minutewomen for her sixth shutout of the season.

UMass goalie Christine Tocco had her work cut out for her, facing 22 shots from the Husky offense. In the first half, Tocco blocked five shots, holding down a 2-0 UConn lead at halftime.

Becky Helwig dribbled through the Minutewomen’s defense to score the first goal of the game 10 minutes into the first period, granting UConn a lead it would continue to hold for the remainder of the game.

With the clock running down on the first half, UConn had its sixth penalty corner. Lauren Henderson was unable to score on her initial shot, but with an assist from Laura Thibodeau, Henderson managed to score on the rebound with only nine seconds left in the period.

“That was an inexcusable goal,” Massachusetts coach Patty Shea said.

The Minutewomen were playing well during the first half, but the final UConn goal of the period seemed to be more of a careless mistake from the Maroon and White. The Huskies had made stronger offensive strikes earlier in the period that had been successfully stopped, but with only seconds remaining until halftime, the Minutewomen stopped focusing on their defense, and allowed the UConn goal.

The first half was marked with especially good defensive playing from UMass. Halfway through the period, the Huskies had three penalty corners in 1 1/2 minutes, but Tocco earned a save on the first, and the defense protected successfully against the next two.

When the second period began, it became clear that UConn was controlling the tempo of the game. Although the Minutewomen managed a few strong offensive maneuvers early in the half from Patricia Borneo and Caitlin Beresin, the Huskies quickly took charge of the field.

With virtually all the second half action happening in the UMass end, Connecticut had an offensive explosion, scoring five goals in just over eighteen minutes. The strike began with a goal from Mary Jo Malone off an assist from Kelly Stolle. Stolle scored three minutes later, assisted by Laura Puddle.

Henderson scored her second goal of the game, unassisted, barely four minutes after Stolle’s goal. Cea Fong came up with the final two goals of the game, the first one coming on a near baseball swing at her waist.

There was little help for Tocco in the second half, though she managed seven saves in the loss. The UMass defenders were not sticking with specific targets, and allowing the Huskies to escape them. The Minutewomen seemed to lose focus in the second half, becoming more desperate as their opponent continued to rack up goals.

“When we don’t commit ourselves to the type of defense we need to be successful, we don’t do well,” Shea said.

There were a few key flaws in UMass’ play on Saturday. Despite working hard to penetrate the Husky defense, The Minutewomen often found themselves in the unenviable position of sending the ball backwards, where defender Kristin Hopwood was given the task of restarting the offense.

“There are times when we forget how hard we worked to get where we are, and we forget to continue working hard,” Shea said. “When we’ve made a decision to transfer the ball and we haven’t all decided collectively as a group, that’s when we get stuck. When everyone’s clicking and on the same page, that’s when we’re successful.”

Coach Shea remains optimistic about her team, and UMass already has more wins than it did at this time last year.

“We just need to be consistent,” she said.

Unconcerned about this weekend’s loss, the team is preparing for its upcoming game against Syracuse this Friday at 7 p.m.

“We’re in it for the marathon, not the sprint,” said sophomore Katelyn Woolfrey.