Haverford Tops Garnet 2-0
Haverford (14-3-1, 7-2-1 CC) broke open a scoreless game with a pair of goals in the second half, on its way to a hard-fought 2-0 win over Swarthmore in Haverford, Pa. on Saturday afternoon. It was the regular season finale for both teams.
Haverford had done its homework, double-teaming Swathmore's leading scorer, sophomore forward Danielle Tocchet, the whole game, limiting her to only one shot. Tocchet entered the game tied for second in the conference in for goals in Centennial play (six), and tied for third in the conference with eight goals on the season. She still managed to give them fits even with the pressure creating some nice chances for her teammates.
Swarthmore's midfield possessed the ball much of the first half with Natalie Negrey '07 controlling the tempo of play. Senior midfielder and captain Val Maulbeck went down with an injury just before the half and the Garnet had to hope to carry the momentum they had built into the second half without her.
Coming out of the 0-0 half, Swarthmore didn't waste much time getting back into an attack mode despite playing against a headwind that increased in intensity as the minutes ticked down.
Midway through a balanced second half, Haverford started to exert attacking pressure with the wind at their backs. First-year Garnet defender Caitlin Mullarkey, along with classmates Alexa Bensimhon and Lauren Walker, managed to thwart several scoring attempts by the Fords.
"Mullarkey was all over the field today stopping one Ford attempt after another," Anckaitis said, "and Bensimhon battled hard providing a valuable first pass in our attack. Throw some big saves by Walker in the mix, and our defense again showed why we've provided fits to several strong attacking sides all season."
"Along with the 2002 and 2003 teams, we've recorded the lowest goals-against average (GAA) by a Swarthmore women's squad (24 goals against). We've also had the second-best defensive showing, ever, in-conference for Swarthmore with a 1.60 GAA. That's a credit to how hard this team has worked and how competitive they are," Anckaitis said.
At 63:58 however, the Fords put the first score on the board with a controversial no-call that began with a Ford attacker heading the ball towards a teammate in an off-side's position. Although she didn't touch the ball her position shielded the goalkeeper from the slow-bouncing ball and kept Walker from making the save.
Shortly thereafter, Haverford's Ashley Emmons broke free on the outside and drove a shot to the far post that snuck just past Walker's outstretched hands and inside the post, giving the Fords an insurance goal at 84:17.
"It is hard to lose 14 players from the previous year's team and expect immediate success but this young group hit some huge milestones, met several goals set at the beginning of the season, and have opened eyes all over the conference with their intensity and level of play. Six overtime games and some exciting finishes have kept me on the edge of my seat all season. There are good things to come for Garnet women's soccer," Anckaitis said.
Swarthmore concludes the 2005 season with a record of 3-11-3 overall and 1-7-2 in the Centennial Conference.