Eagles Stop Garnet Streak
SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- The Garnet women's soccer team suffered its first loss of the season, falling 1-0 in two overtimes, to visiting Eastern Friday night at damp Clothier Field.
Eastern freshman Allison Inch scored the game-winner on Friday night in the 101st minute, finishing off a rebound shot initiated by teammate Nicole Grindle. It was Inch’s first collegiate goal.
An afternoon rainstorm ceased just before warmups and the late arriving crowd, fueled by the Youth Soccer Month celebration and Au Pair Night, was treated to an evenly contested soccer match. A potent Eagles offense, led by All-America midfielder Ashley Hackman, butted heads with the stout Swarthmore defense, led by two-time All-Region senior Cait Mullarkey (Wilmington, Del. / Ursuline Academy). A scoreless half saw the Eagles holding a slight edge, 6-5, in the shot category.
The second half saw play loosen up with Swarthmore’s set plays countering sharp diagonal runs by Eastern. Garnet sophomore midfielder Sarah Reece (Manhattan Beach, Calif. / Mira Costa) nearly scored from 35 yards out, but an athletic save by Eastern goalkeeper Amanda Daveler in the 70th minute kept the booming shot from entering the upper left corner.
The teams entered the overtime with the teams knotted at 11 shots apiece. The Garnet had a pair of corner kicks in the first overtime but Daveler and the Eagles backline held strong.
Eastern played the second overtime kickoff down the right flank and a hustling play by Grindle created the scoring chance for Inch, sending the Eagles, the 2007 Pennsylvania Athletic Conference champions, to their first win of the season.
Garnet senior goalkeeper Lauren Walker (Fallston, Md. / The Hotchkiss School [Ct.]) made seven saves while counterpart Daveler posted five stops for Eastern.
Swarthmore (3-1) lost for just the second time in its last 15 matches (10-2-3) and suffered only the fifth defeat in the 33 home contests under head coach Todd Anckaitis (four are 1-0 decisions). The Garnet saw their impressive scoreless streak snapped at 897:44, dating back to the Haverford match in October 2007.
The Garnet begin a grueling road trip (four matches away from Clothier Field), traveling to third-ranked College of New Jersey on Sept. 17 at 4:00 p.m., followed by the 2008 Centennial opener at Dickinson on Sept. 20 and then a date with three-time Conference champion Johns Hopkins (currently ranked 15th).
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