Peterson, Garnet Slow down the Mustangs
OWING MILLS, Mary. -- On a windy Saturday afternoon, the 24th-ranked Swarthmore women's soccer overcame the Mustangs of Villa Julie by a score of 3-1 in non-conference action. The Garnet improve to 10-1 overall, marking the fourth time in school history the team has reached a double-digit victory total.
The Garnet dominated play right from the beginning, hitting numerous shots that went just over and wide of the Mustang crossbar. The goal scoring began when Swarthmore midfielder Maggie DeLorme '10 (Lusby, Mary. / Patuxent) stole the ball in the Mustang midfield, made a dash to the wing and sent a lofty cross into midfielder Kirsten Peterson'11 (Fenton, Mich. / Powers Catholic). Peterson finished off the play to get the Garnet on the board at 18:09.
The strong defensive play of Cait Mullarkey '09 (Wilmington, Del. / Ursuline Academy) and Laura Bolger '11 (Centerport, N.Y. / Harborfields ) kept the Mustang shots to a minimum.
Swarthmore continued to pressure the Mustang defense, as Delorme and Julia Luongo '10 (Tallahassee, FL/ Leon) controlled the mid-field, working the ball down the wings. Towards the end of the first half, Peterson won the ball on the wing and sent a perfectly slotted ball to the top of the box to Danielle Tocchet '08 (Highland Falls, N.Y. / James I O'Neill), who notched her fifth goal of the season at 40:26.
The Garnet led in shots at intermission (25-5) with the score at 2-0, Swarthmore.
The Garnet continued to dominate play in the second half with several good scoring opportunities by Megan Colombo '11 (Arcadia, Calif. / Arcadia) and Kelsey Cline '11 (Camano Island, Wash. / Stanwood).
The Mustangs had a quick counter attack and were able to get a ball in behind the Garnet defense, beating Swarthmore backup goalkeeper Kristen Traband '08 (Swarthmore, Pa. / Ridley) on a breakaway at 48:41 with a goal from Rose Phelan. It is just the fourth goal given up by the strong Garnet defense this season.
Swarthmore quickly responded by working the ball downfield to Colombo, who hit a shot off the post. Classmate Cline cleaned up the rebound, scoring her fifth goal of the season at 49:31 (Cline is tied with Tocchet for leading goal scorer on the team).
The Garnet (10-1 overall, 5-1 CC) return to Clothier Field on October 17th to face the first-place Ursinus Bears at 5:00 p.m.