By Malcolm Luck
Staff Writer
Just three days following its dominating 16-0 blowout against Neumann University, the College hit its first stumbling block of the season when it suffered a 12-10 loss against Haverford College on Feb. 26.
The Lions, coming into the game ranked No. 3 in the nation, began the game by giving up their first goal of the season with 28:39 to play in regulation. True to its resilient form, the College responded with four unanswered goals to take an early lead.
The Lions’ first goal came off the stick of junior attacker Kasey Donoghue, who scored her fourth goal of the season off of a free position attempt. The next three came within a 23-second stretch beginning with junior attacker Talia Bouzakis. Senior midfielder Erin Harvey and sophomore midfielder Kaela Sierra accounted for the third and fourth goals, putting the Lions up 4-1 with 23:53 left on the clock in the first half.
Haverford responded with its second goal 2 minutes later.
Junior midfielder Alexandria Fitzpatrick answered by netting her fifth score of the season. With 13:52 left on the scoreboard, the Lions surrendered their slim lead when Haverford netted a goal to tie the game at six a piece.
The College would not lead for the remainder of the day as Haverford went into halftime with a 9-7 lead. A defensive matchup ensued in the second half, as Haverford looked to preserve its narrow lead. Haverford netted two more goals early to put the team up by a score of 11-7 with 27:17 to play. Following 10 minutes of play without scoring from either side, the Lions bounced back with goals on back-to-back possessions to reduce the deficit to two.
Haverford added an insurance goal with 5:10 remaining. The Lions only managed to scratch out one more goal with less than a minute left to play, but their efforts came up short as they ultimately were sent home with their first loss of the season.
The game against Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham scheduled to be held on Friday, March 1 was postponed due to inclement weather, leaving the Lions with a 1-1 record on the season. The College’s next game will be held on Saturday, March 9 against Dickinson College at home.
