The Stony Brook Seawolves’ women’s soccer team’s two-game winning streak was snapped Friday night after suffering defeat to their Long Island counterpart, the Hofstra Pride, 2-1.
Just over a minute after the Seawolves tied the game, the Pride put themselves back on top for good and ended Stony Brook’s chance for a three-game win streak.
Freshman defender Madeline Anderson of Hofstra silenced the Stony Brook celebration by capitalizing on a broken play, giving the Pride the lead late in the second half.
The Anderson goal came right after sophomore midfielder Manuela Corcho gave the Seawolves hope with a goal of her own in the 65th minute. Corcho broke through the defense and was able to lift a shot over Hofstra junior goalkeeper Friederike Mehring’s head for the first goal of her collegiate career.
Corcho was the only player that found a weak spot in the Hofstra defense, as she also had a breakaway midway through the first half but went wide left, failing to produce a shot on goal.
Other than Corcho the Seawolves were hard pressed to find any other offensive contributors. Hofstra’s defense did nearly a perfect job at neutralizing the Seawolves any time they had the ball.
The game was drastically one-sided in terms of opportunities, with the Pride outshooting Stony Brook 33-9, yet the Seawolves kept the game within reach throughout the night.
While under fire all night, the Seawolves defense stiffened when necessary and successfully defended six corner kicks. Using both a collapsing defense and blocking passing lanes, they managed to give up only two goals.
Along with the strong defense, it was Stony Brook junior goalkeeper Emily Doherty who showed great composure as she faced shots coming from every which way while recording eight saves on the night.
Speed and physicality were seen early and often. Hofstra senior forward Leah Galton exposed the Seawolves’ weaknesses using her quickness and ball handling to pass defenders.
Several times, the Seawolves watched Galton take the ball from midfield to the Stony Brook goal. Galton finished the night with 10 shots, more than the whole Seawolves team. She also opened up scoring with a goal in the 49th minute.
The loss sends Stony Brook to 2-5 on the season. The Seawolves will look to produce a better outcome Sunday afternoon when they come home to face Farleigh Dickinson at 2:00 p.m.