Box Score Brooklyn Heights, NY -
The St. Francis College Women's Soccer team opened up Northeast Conference play on their home turf against the Bryant Bulldogs on Thursday afternoon with a 3-2 victory.
It only took the Terriers a little over 7' to find the back of the net and take a 1-0 lead. Junior
Isabelle Gollette fired a shot from 25 yards out that pinged the crossbar, but the follow up by Junior
Sarah Dewitt proved to be advantageous for the Terriers as she volleyed the rebound past Jessica Rinaldi in net for the Bulldogs.
Bryant quickly found their stride 3' later when Freshman Catherine Bean picked up a loose ball from the backline of the Terriers defense and slid one past
Klil Keshwar in net for St. Francis.
The Terriers and Bulldogs settled into an even run of play until Freshman
Kendra Rust pushed through the midfield for the Terriers and headed the ball past the defensive line and then again past the Bryant goalkeeper to regain the Terrier lead in the 20'.
The Terriers held a steady pace and continued the attack on the Bryant defense and ended the half with another strike off the woodwork.
The second half saw a change in net for Bryant and Rinaldi was replaced by Kathryn McNeil.
The Terriers were relentless to start the second half. 2' in, Junior
McKayla Palhof raced down the sideline to feed a cross into the box where Junior
Hailey Russell deflected it past the Bryant goalkeeper to give the Terriers a 3-1 lead.
The pace of the game pushed for the remainder of the second half and both teams saw opportunities to add to the scoreboard, however Keshwar and McNeil held strong in net for their respective teams.
With nealrly 10' left in the half, Bryant was awarded a penalty kick for a tackle in the box. Freshman Emma Pedolzky stepped to the line and despite a glance from Keshwar's gloves Bryant closed the gap on the scoreboard for a score of 3-2.
As the game winded down, the Terriers kept possession of the ball with
Hailey Russell earning the squad late game free-kicks in Bryant's defensive end.
The Terriers saw 9 total corner kicks to Bryant's 6 and shots were nearly even with St. Francis Holding a 16-14 lead.
Keshwar made 5 saves in net for the Terriers.
The Terriers travel to Long Island University this Saturday for their first Northeast Conference road match of the year. Kickoff is set for 11am.
