No. 17 Garnet Blitz Washington College 4-0
SWARTHMORE, Pa. – Junior Megan Colombo scored two goals, senior Taylor Rhodes recorded a goal and two assists and sophomore Hannah Deming also found the back of the net as the No. 20 Swarthmore women’s soccer team (8-2, 2-1) overwhelmed Centennial Conference-rival Washington College 4-0 on Tuesday evening from Clothier Field Stadium.
Colombo scored two goals in the Garnet's rout of Washington.
After not scoring more than one goal in a game during a brutal five-match stretch against some of the top teams in the Mid-Atlantic region, the Garnet offense came to life against the Shorewomen (5-3-1, 1-2), scoring four goals, recording 17 shots on goal and controlling possession for nearly the entire match. The defense was also up to task for the Garnet, not allowing Washington College a single shot on goal.
Swarthmore wasted no time pouncing on the Shorewomen in the first half, scoring three goals over an eight-minute stretch to put the game out of reach early. In the 9th minute - following an indirect kick from top left of box - Rhodes got a foot on the ball, directed it towards junior Kirsten Peterson, who headed it towards the center of the box where Colombo was waiting to knock it to the back of net, giving Swat the early 1-0 lead
Just three minutes later, Rhodes got into the scoring act herself, scoring on a wide-open goal from the front of the box after being set-up beautifully by senior captain Julia Luongo on a breakaway, giving the Garnet a commanding 2-0 lead.
The third and final goal of the first half came from Deming, who scored off a corner from Rhodes - her second assist of the evening - in the 17th minute, putting Swarthmore in front 3-0.
Just like in the first half, the Garnet wasted no time lighting up the scoreboard after the opening whistle of the second half. In the 49th minute, sophomore Alyssa Bowie’s lead pass from the midfielder set up a Colombo on a breakaway down the left of the field. After a few dribbles, she scored her second goal of the game from point-blank range to extend the lead to 4-0.
For the game, the Garnet held an 11-0 advantage in corners and 35-2 edge in shots.
Sophomore goalkeeper Marie Mutryn picked up the shutout for the Garnet. Washington College goalkeeper Caroline Grier made seven saves in the second half, moving into second place for most saves at the school.
The No. 20 Garnet return to action on Saturday when it travels to McDaniel. Action is slated to begin at 1:00 p.m.
NOTE: The victory was the 50th for head coach Todd Anckaitis at Swarthmore College.