MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College women's soccer team dropped its Northeast-10 Conference opener in double overtime to No. 6 College of Saint Rose, 3-2, on Sunday afternoon.
The Hawks suffer their first defeat of the season, falling to 1-1 overall with a 0-1 record in the NE10. The Golden Knights remain undefeated and improve to 3-0 and 1-0 in conference play.
Kaeyln Britt found open space inside the Hawks 18-yard box and headed home the game-winning goal for Saint Rose in the 101st minute.
Janina Mueller won a contested ball near the far sideline and sent a service into the middle of the box where Britt was waiting. Britt redirected the ball with her head into the lower left of the goal to give the Golden Knights a 3-2 double overtime win.
The Hawks opened the scoring in the third minute as freshman
Sydney Wnek (Haverhill, Mass.) beat Saint Rose's
Marika Laurendeau in the upper half of the goal. Senior
Travis Pratt (Newburyport, Mass.) threw the ball in to senior
Regan Pratt (Newburyport, Mass.).
Regan Pratt battled with a defender and won the loose ball battle. She quickly chipped the ball into the middle of the box where Wnek volleyed home her first career goal and gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead early.
Saint Anselm controlled the play early but the Golden Knights would push the pace and eventually crack the scoreboard. In the 38th minute,
Samantha Diaz drove into the box and fired home a rebound shot to even the score.
Sidney Brucato sent a ball towards goal where junior
Kate Macaluso (Malverne, N.Y.) made the save, but could not corral the loose ball.
Saint Rose took a 2-1 lead in the 55th minute after opening the second half on the attack. After forcing the Hawks to clear the ball out of the sideline,
Mia Klammer sent the throw-in to the box where it was turned away from immediate danger. However,
Katlyn Krupski collected the free ball and fired a strike on net. Macaluso got some of the ball but not enough as the shot redirected off the crossbar and into the goal.
The Hawks battled back and gained the equalizer 13 minutes later. After winning a battle down the sideline, the Hawks were rewarded with a throw-in. Freshman
Riley Digilio (Danvers, Mass.) found junior
Grace Foley (Middleton, Mass.) just outside the 18. Foley worked the ball up the field and then carried it toward the goal. She managed to create enough separation and launched a high-arcing shot from the right of the box and into the upper left of the goal.
The Golden Knights had a chance to regain the lead in the 78th minute but a shot by Klammer hit the crossbar and bounced back to Macaluso.
Macaluso made nine saves on 12 shots on goal in the losing effort. She falls to 1-1 on the season. Laurendeau stopped three shots out of the five on frame, improving to 3-0.
The Golden Knights outshot the Hawks, 20-12, and held a 12-5 advantage in shots on goal. Saint Rose held a slight advantage in corner kicks, 8-6.
Saint Anselm returns to action on Wednesday, Sept. 15 when Daemen comes to the Hilltop. The opening kick is scheduled for 4 p.m.
