RICHMOND -- The Earlham College field hockey team scored an important home win in North Coast Athletic Conference action against DePauw University 1-0 on Wednesday evening. 

The Quakers improved to 14-2 (5-1 NCAC) while the Tigers fell to 5-11 (3-5 NCAC). 

With the win, the 2021 Quakers stand alone atop program history for the most wins in a season. 

Earlham scored their sole goal of the match with 6:19 remaining in the fourth quarter on a penalty corner taken by Molly McKellar. McKellar played the ball in to Denise Bergdolt who then laid off a ball to Olivia Layne. Layne ripped a shot at the Tiger goal which was blocked by the goalkeeper. The deflection however bounced back to Layne who managed to score on her second attempt for the game-winner. 

Earlham recorded eight shots on the evening with seven of them on goal. Layne and Bedrgdolt led the Quakers with two shots on goal each. 

The Earlham back line, headed by Junior Karina Steitz kept reigning NCAC Player of the Week and NFHCA honorable mention Meg Murphy protected with zero shots from the Tigers. 

Earlham will host Wittenberg on Saturday for senior day in Darrell Beane Stadium beginning at noon. On Sunday, the Quakers will conclude their regular season at Ohio Wesleyan University also at noon. 

The Quakers are now in a 2-way tie for first place in the conference with Kenyon College. The Ladies have the advantage if the standings end in a tie due to beating Earlham head-to-head in the regular season. With Denison falling, Earlham has a good chance to host a semifinal match against the fourth seed next Tuesday in Darrell Beane Stadium.