By Eric Weiss
Senior Writer
The women’s soccer team had a weekend of highs and lows on the road, coming from behind to defeat Lafayette 2-1 on Friday but falling to Lehigh by the same score on Sunday.
The contest against Lafayette provided few scoring opportunities, as both the Leopards and the Bison showed strong defenses. The Leopards were able to sneak onto the scoreboard in the 27th minute for the first goal of the match. For the rest of the first half, neither team was able to mount any sustained pressure.
“Lafayette definitely was prepared for a fight, but we knew that we just had to play our game and we could come out with a win,” Jules Harris ’11 said.
The Orange and Blue came through in the second half. Christa Matlack ’11, the Bison’s most prolific scorer, leveled the score at 1-1. With the goal, Matlack became only the sixth player in program history to record 30 goals in her career.
Tara Cort ’12 set up the next goal for the Bison as she found Brooke Stokes ’11 open and passed so Stokes could score in the 77th minute. The Orange and Blue continued to hold Lafayette in check for the rest of the game and the team walked away with a 2-1 victory.
“Every game is an important game at this point in the year, and our team showed that against Lafayette,” Amanda Citron ’11 said.
In the contest against the Mountain Hawks, the Bison found themselves behind early as Lehigh got onto the scoreboard just 12 minutes in. Although the Bison were outshot 6-2 in the first half they did not allow another goal for the rest of the half.
The Hawks added an insurance goal at the beginning of the second half, slowing the Bison’s chance at a comeback win. The Orange and Blue were able to get onto the scoreboard with 6:19 left as Cort drew a penalty when she was brutally taken down inside the box. Caitlin Holtz ’11 converted on the try and brought the Bison back within striking distance.
The Orange and Blue were unable to muster another shot on goal in the last five minutes of play, and the opportunity to remain undefeated in the Patriot League slipped away.
While most of the University heads home for Fall Break, the women’s soccer team will continue play on Saturday afternoon against Navy in Annapolis, Md. Navy remains at the top of the Patriot League standings.