The women’s soccer team (1-1 Patriot League, 4-3 overall) began Patriot League play with a 1-0 loss against the College of the Holy Cross (2-0 Patriot League, 5-6 overall) last Saturday followed by a Wednesday night win at Lehigh (0-2 Patriot League, 1-5-4 overall).
The Leopards came off a 1-0 win against NJIT the weekend before and were looking to start league play on a high note in Worcester, Massachusetts.
“The team and I were pumped up and excited to get league play started,” sophomore goalkeeper Catherine Apker wrote in an email. “We were focused on getting off to a great start again this year.”
The action started quickly in the first half at Linda Johnson Smith Soccer Stadium when the Crusaders found the goal in the 19th minute, forcing the Leopards to play from behind early on.
“After their early goal we were obviously disappointed to be chasing the lead,” junior midfielder April McDonald wrote in an email. “We had been playing well and controlling the game up to that point.”
Immediately after, the Maroon and White earned a corner kick that was initially converted on before an official called a foul, reverting the goal.
The rest of the half was a battle of field position. Despite the Leopards’ 11-5 shot advantage over the Crusaders, they went scoreless into halftime down 1-0.
“During the first half our attacks were pretty successful, I found myself getting into open areas in front of the box and my teammates were able to get me the ball with time and space, allowing me to get shots off,” McDonald wrote.
Three minutes into the second half, the Leopards had their first chance to score when freshman defender Camryn Fitch smoked a shot that went through two defenders on goal, but the Crusader goalkeeper made an athletic dive that prevented the potential game-tying score.
With time winding down, a pass found senior midfielder Michaela Salvati, who headed the ball on goal only to meet another Crusader save.
“The coaches’ messages were to stay focused on our game model and play the way we know how to play,” Salvati said. “The game model designed by the coaches leads us to be in position for shots and shots on goal.”
Despite the Leopards’ continued shot advantage, the horn sounded with the Maroon and White scoreless, beginning Patriot League play with a loss.
“We fought and battled for the full 90 minutes,” Apker wrote. “We never got down and gave ourselves lots of chances until the final whistle.”
The Leopards avenged the Saturday loss with their first Patriot League win on Wednesday night against Lehigh.
Before the game, McDonald wrote that the team looked to “take that attacking mindset and start off strong against Lehigh.”
The Leopards fulfilled these goals, with senior midfielder Alexa Jindal finding the back of the net in the 25th minute.
Despite being outshot 7-5 in the first half, the Leopards held the Mountain Hawks scoreless through the opening period.
The shutout effort continued in the second period behind Apker’s six saves. Early in the half, the Leopards tallied another goal, this time by junior forward Katrina Santelli off an assist by Jindal.
While the shot advantage remained in the Mountain Hawks’ favor, finishing with a 15-8 Mountain Hawks advantage, the Maroon and White finished the shutout to earn three points on the evening.
The Leopards return to action tomorrow afternoon in a home game against Patriot League opponent Loyola (1-0-1 Patriot League, 6-2-2 overall) followed by an out-of-conference game at Princeton (4-3 overall) on Tuesday night.