Schedules, scores and statistics are provided by beaconsathletics.com, see website for more information.
The Beacons traveled all the way from our small ocean-side campus in Boston to Cortland, N.Y., for a pair of games on back-to-back days Sept. 8 and 9 at the annual SUNY Cortland Tournament. UMass Boston opened up the tournament with a loss to the nationally-ranked State University of New York at Cortland Red Dragons, who were previously ranked number 21 on the national preseason poll in Division III, and are currently ranked 17th (1). The Beacons looked to take advantage of the early momentum they gained with their first win in the home opener against United States Coast Guard Academy (2).
The Beacons started off strong with a quick goal by Andera Rivera, who obtained her first career goal earlier in the week, and was assisted by Caileigh Sullivan on a corner kick, giving UMass Boston the 1–0 lead in the 21st minute. However, the lead was short-lived after Cortland’s Katie Cosenza scored the equalizer 10 minutes later, tying the game 1–1. The Beacons’ goalie, Isabella O’Connell, finished the afternoon with six saves in the net. She was a huge factor in keeping the Red Dragons’ offense honest for the rest of the first half, as they went to the locker room with a 1–1 draw at halftime (1).
Entering the second half, The Beacons looked to build off of their strong defensive momentum, but Cortland had other plans and put on an offensive show, scoring three goals in the second half. One by Tyla Vuotto in the 64th minute and two goals netted by Kayla Valeritori in the 72nd and 75th minute put the game to rest. The Beacons just couldn’t catch up, having two recorded shots in the second half. They ended up losing 4–1 and couldn’t catch fire against a super-tough opponent in the Red Dragons (1).
The next game was against Arcadia University, who came all the way from Glenside, Pa. for the tournament, Saturday, Sept. 9. The Beacons looked to rebound from their challenging loss the previous day. The first half started off with an old-fashioned defensive battle, as goalies from both teams made excellent stops. It wasn’t until the 27th minute that Arcadia’s Caroline Weirich drew first blood for The Knights, giving them the 1–0 lead. Arcadia soon scored again with a goal by Courtney Keehner, who was assisted by Elaina McGee in the 34th minute, making it 2–0 (3).
UMass Boston was in a deep hole early and tried their hardest to fight back. The team cut the lead in half with a goal by Kaylee Haynes, her second goal of the season, making it a 2–1 ball game. They finished the half with only a one-goal deficit and looked to bounce back. The Beacons looked to make a comeback; however, those hopes were shattered in the 56th minute when Arcadia’s Madison Toyama scored with an assist by Abby Stephens, giving the Knights a 3–1 lead. The rest of the half was an offensive show for Arcadia; two more goals by Alexis Rabold and Isabella Pures—who was assisted by R. Mahlau-Heinert in the 64th and 68th minutes—brought the game to a lost cause at 5–1 (3).
It was a tough outing for the Beacons that weekend after having to take back-to-back losses to extremely competitive teams. UMass Boston tried their hardest, but it just wasn’t enough. The Beacons looked to rebound back at home on Sept. 13 against Eastern Nazarene College, but the game was unfortunately postponed to a later date. Fortunately, they have games at Curry College this Tuesday, Sept. 19 and against Elmira College Saturday, Sept. 23 at James Cotter Field. Be sure to support your fellow Beacons this season as they go on a quest toward glory in capturing the Little East Conference title.
- Women’s Soccer Drops Opening Game of SUNY Cortland Tournament – UMass Boston (beaconsathletics.com)
- Help The Bear! – Women’s Soccer Handles Coast Guard in Homecoming – UMass Boston (beaconsathletics.com)
- Women’s Soccer Falls to Arcadia at SUNY Cortland Tournament – UMass Boston (beaconsathletics.com)