Swarthmore Runs By Terror
3/25: Swarthmore Runs By Terror
WESTMINSTER, Md. — Swarthmore midfielder Katie Crawford capped an incredible Garnet comeback on Saturday afternoon, scoring the game-winning goal with 1:52 left to give Swarthmore a 16-15 Centennial victory over homestanding McDaniel. The Garnet (8-0) are off to the best start in school history.
Sophomore goalie Susannah Blair made three big saves (totaling ten on the day) in the final 1:13 to give Swarthmore a win in its 2006 Centennial Conference opener.
McDaniel (2-5, 1-1 CC) jumped out to a 2-0 lead before Swarthmore ran off three straight scores to take its first lead of the day. Junior midfielder Athena Samaras scored her 13th goal off an assist by midfielder Megan Sanborn '08 at 2:16, senior midfielder Niamh Shortt put in one of her two goals at 7:15, and junior midfielder Lindsay Roth scored her first of three at 7:38.
The Green Terror scored four of the next five goals to assume a 7-4 lead midway through the first half. The Garnet closed the half with three scores of their own (one each by Shortt, Sanborn, and Heidi Fieselmann '06) to tie the score at 7-7.
The McDaniel offense came out on fire in the first ten minutes of the second half, scoring six times to increase the lead to 13-9. Sanborn put in an unassisted goal for the Garnet at 34:20 and junior Rachel Jordan scored off a pass from Roth at 39:05 to keep Swarthmore within striking distance.
Roth made it 13-10 with her second goal at 44:21, but the Green Terror answered with two more goals to seemingly put the game away, 15-10, at 49:04.
Roth got the Swarthmore comeback started with a free position goal 52:01 and Crawford followed suit with a free position score two minutes later. Jordan cut the McDaniel lead to 15-13 at 75:30 with a free position goal of her own.
Fieselmann kept the ball rolling at the 57:15 mark, scoring an unassisted goal and Jordan completed her hat trick with the game-tying score at 57:49. Crawford put Swarthmore ahead for good (its first lead since the seven minute mark in the first half) with the unassisted game-winner just under the two-minute mark.
Blair, among the conference leaders in save percentage (.537) and goals-against-average (7.00) thwarted four Terror attempts to tie the game, including getting a little help from the post on one shot.
Roth completed a banner day with three goals, one assist, a game-high five ground balls, two draw controls, and three caused turnovers.
Crawford's game-winner was her second goal of the day, and the 16th of the season - a career-high. Jordan tallied all three of her goals in the second half, matching her career high of eight scores on the season.
Swarthmore faces a big challenge this Tuesday, March 28 when the 10th-ranked Diplomats from Franklin & Marshall come to Clothier Field for a 5:00 p.m. game.