Women’s soccer loses on senior day in NE10 opener

By Dillon Flanigan

Sports Editor

In a tough NE10 conference game on Saturday, Sept. 21, the women’s soccer team fell to the Adelphi University Panthers 1-0.

After coming off a road win at Holy Family University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the team returned home for senior night and their NE10 opener.

This game was delayed, as the field hockey game going on earlier that day was extended; therefore, warmups and a pregame ceremony were kept on hold until after the previous game had wrapped. After honoring their eight seniors, and a national anthem performance by Owls forward Laura Ryer, a senior, the game was underway.

“I was really proud of our players. They did what we asked them to do. They played with heart; they played with passion. They were organized; they were brave,” Head Coach Adam Cohen said. “I couldn’t really ask them to do anything more.”

The Owls had several opportunities to score early, as forward Laura Ryer, a senior, had a corner kick that was saved by Adelphi’s goalkeeper Peyton DeRouen.

DeRouen had nine saves during the game, while the Owls goalkeeper Kaelen Fabry, a graduate, had four.

The game was tied 0-0 at the half, as the Owls tried many creative ways to move the ball around and to stop the movement from the Panthers, but it was not easy.

“The players, they’re so creative. That’s kind of the beauty about soccer,” Cohen said. “The coaches give the foundation and the ideas and the concepts, but once the game starts, the players take over. A lot of those creative moments come from the players.”

In the early minutes of the second half, what seemed to be minor collisions between Panthers’ Micaella Romagno and the Owls’ forward Nicky Deslauriers, a junior, were given a yellow card in two separate instances.

Cohen said: “I just think that’s part of the game. They’re playing hard, and sometimes it happens.”

There were many kicks out of bounds by the Owls to disrupt the seamless speed of the Panthers.

Many times, it worked, as it would result in a lost opportunity for the Panthers. However, in minute 70, Adelphi took a 1-0 lead.

“I think we really knew that they were going to be trying to look for the over-the-top ball, and we were really able to protect that,” forward Shelby Green, a junior, said. “We were very confident that we would be able to score, and I think that just knowing that all NE10 teams are very good, you have to finish your chances.”

In the final two minutes of the game, everyone was on the edge of their seat. Deslauriers started the Owls’ attempt to tie the game, as her kick was saved by DeRouen.

After she missed, everyone who was on the edge of their seat was on their feet, as forward Alexie Rosado, a graduate, connected for the header but missed by inches, hitting the top of the goal instead.

Midfielder and forward Sydney Myers, a sophomore, would miss her shot, as Rosado and the Owls’ final attempt resulted in a save by DeRouen.

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VOL. 64- ISSUE 3