Syracuse’s Strong Defensive Effort Leads to Scoreless Draw With Princeton
By Cole Purvis | @Cole_Purvis
Syracuse women’s soccer (3-1-2, 0-0 ACC) played to a scoreless draw with Princeton (0-2-2, 0-0 Ivy League) today.
SU keeper Shea Vanderbosch came into the match with just 12 saves on the season. Today, she recorded another ten. Her presence in goal and the strong play of the Syracuse back line led to a tie against a relentless Princeton offense.
The early Tiger opportunities came by way of Alexandra Barry in the 25th minute. The sophomore forced Vanderbosch to make a diving save, and then immediately got the ball back, putting on a hard shot that was blocked by the Syracuse defense on its way to the goal.
On the ‘Cuse side, junior Anna Rupert spearheaded a good opportunity three minutes later, dribbling down the left side with a 45 degree angle towards goal. She shot, but had it immediately blocked by the lone defender hovering around her. The ball took a good bounce right to senior Mia Klammer, who fired a shot, forcing Princeton goalie Cecilia Cerone to make a leaping save.
45 minutes passed, marking the second straight SU game that was scoreless at the half.
The second frame saw a heavy dose of Princeton offense. The SU back line rotated well to each shot that was fired, with several body blocks, and when a ball did get through, Vanderbosch was there for the save.
Tigers freshman Nina Cantor came out very aggressive in the second half. The forward found herself with a scoring opportunity seemingly every couple of minutes. She put a shot on goal from a tough angle in the 65th minute, and then another one in the 72nd that forced Vanderbosch to dive to her right to stop the shot.
In the 78th minute, Syracuse junior Vita Naihin came inches from a goal. She fired from about 30 yards out, with the ball hitting the crossbar and rocketing straight downward towards the goal line. The ball just barely missed the line, as the officials did not declare it a goal, despite it being very hard to tell. The game stayed scoreless, just barely.
The last five minutes of the game featured a last push by Princeton to notch a goal. Tigers’ junior Kayla Wong received an entry into the box and made an athletic play to redirect the ball on goal, forcing Vanderbosch to make a great diving save.
With a minute to go, ‘Cuse countered, and Ashley Rauch got off a low shot for the final effort of the day. Time ran out, and it was the second straight draw for Syracuse, after tying 1-1 with Quinnipiac the other day.
Syracuse looks to get back in the win column at home this Thursday against Binghamton.
