Many believe that soccer is more of a finesse game than anything. In contrast, the sport can also be known as a very physical bout and that is exactly what was showcased in Wednesday afternoon’s non-conference women’s soccer matchup on the USM Soccer Field. The UNE Nor’easters showed their strength against USM as they beat them 3-0 in the two team’s first matchup of the season.
Early on, both teams showed confidence and were controlling the ball evenly. But, as time ticked, the bigger Nor’easters squad established their presence as they controlled the tempo and displayed how solid they really were.
“They’re a very big and physical team and were simply just winning the ball out of the air,” USM Coach Lisa Petruccelli stated.
UNE sophomore forward Sarah Richardson scored two goals in the contest, including the game winning third goal to carry her team to victory. She netted her first goal with the game tied up at zero in the 22nd minute, off a quick, low to the ground cross from the left wing off the foot of freshman midfielder Karina Scavo. UNE was not done there, extending their lead 4 minutes later as sophomore forward Maggie Mahoney recorded a goal of her own. Mahoney took a shot from 12 yards out, off an assist from senior midfielder Ali Trafton that slipped by USM goalkeeper Allison Bradley to make the score 2-0. USM had their chances in the first half, including a good run up the left hand side by junior midfielder Heidi DeHaan (Lewiston, ME/St. Dominic) who crossed it to sophomore Kristen Willard (Glenburn, ME/ John Bapst) with 5:15 left to go in the first half, but could not capitalize as UNE senior goalkeeper Leigh Engel smothered the ball before Willard could put it past her.
USM came out in the beginning of the second half with a spark in their step as they regulated the tempo and became more of a physical team. The Huskies kept it up for a good 10 minutes until the Nor’easters took over and continued their dominance at the USM end. Richardson tallied her second goal, an unassisted one, in the 77th minute.
Allison Bradley displayed a tremendous effort in goal for the Huskies as she made 14 saves on UNE’s 26 shots. The senior goalkeeper showcased her athletic ability while under constant pressure from the UNE offense. Bradley has been great for the women Huskies this year and is doing whatever she can to help her team win.
“Allison has worked extremely hard for us,” Petruccelli mentioned. “With the help of our new goalkeeper coach, Jeff Neal, combined with her competitive edge and work ethic, she’s doing a tremendous job of keeping the ball out of the net.”
Bradley’s counterpart, Engel, recorded 2 saves on 3 shots from USM.
Coach Petruccelli and her team are keeping a positive attitude and look to take what they can from this loss in preparation for their remaining games.
“We know what we need to do, and that is to start creating opportunities for ourselves instead of waiting for the ball to come to us,” Petruccelli added. “We need to play the way we were playing in the beginning of the second half. As long as we remain aggressive we’ll be able to stay in games.”
The Huskies, now 0-4 including a 4-1 loss on Saturday to MIT, look to turn things around this week as they take on UMaine Farmington on Tuesday, and in-conference foe UMass Boston on Saturday, both being at home on the USM Soccer Field.