By Joey Bachich
Staff Writer
The Lions beat Berry College 4-0 with a great offensive game, taking over 40 shots total. From start to finish, the Lions kept possession very well and seemed to have put up a defensive wall at the midfield, not even letting Berry get a shot off.
Setting the stage
Women's soccer played their home opener against Berry College on Sept. 7. Both teams came into the match with a 1-1 record, looking to go positive in the win column. The Lions came off a 6-0 win against Haverford College and a closely fought 1-0 loss against the No. 7 ranked William Smith College. The Lions look to avenge their NJAC championship loss last season with a fiery start to the new campaign, looking to suffocate teams with their possession, aggression and offensive firepower.
The Game
The Lions came out hot, holding the ball in Berry’s defensive zone much of the first half. Junior Victoria D’Imperio was linking great with fifth-year senior Lindsey O’Keefe on the right wing, who was cutting through defenders and putting many crosses into the box. Fifth year forward and midfielder Emma Pascarella and Ava Garay both were able to get shots in good areas in the first half, but just could not find the back of the net.
Berry College had chances on the break with the Lions running a very high back line, but Berry had trouble stringing enough passes together to really stress the defense of the Lions. Junior defender Ava Curtis opened the scoring with a long distance shot that Berry’s keeper was unable to get a good hand on and found its way into the back of the net.
The second goal came from freshman Alyssa Alfano from outside the box that was slightly deflected off of a Berry defender and found itself tucked in the bottom right corner. Cassidy Disabato and Rachel Burkhard finished the scoring in the second half to really put the game away.
The Lions finished with 40 shots, with registering 15 on target. It was an overall dominating performance from the Lions in their home opener.
What’s Next
The Lions play Penn State Harrisburg on Sept. 9 at Lions Stadium and look to add yet another win to their record. Penn State Harrisburg comes into the match 2-1, so it should be a good game for the College.
Sept. 13 might be the biggest game of the season when the Lions host preseason number one and defending national champions Johns Hopkins University. Johns Hopkins lost a heartbreaker to No. 3 Messiah, which snapped their 23 game winning streak and they will be looking to avenge that loss.
The Lions could make a statement to the NJAC along with the whole nation if they can hang with the Blue Jays. The Lions are 1-3-2 in the last six matches with Johns Hopkins, so they look to even the score with a win.
