Despite controlling possession for much of the first half, the Stony Brook women’s soccer team fell to the Columbia Lions 2-0 in non-conference play on Friday night.
“I thought we played well,” Head Coach Brendan Faherty said. “Our pressing from our forwards was a lot better than it has been so far this season. We just made a couple of mistakes, and Columbia punished us for those mistakes. When Columbia made similar mistakes, we were unable to punish them.”
The Lions struck in the 27th minute as junior forward Rachel Alexander beat out Seawolves freshman goalkeeper Sofia Manner from the left side of the box after a midfield pass from senior defender Natalie Ambrose. In the 65th minute, junior forward Emma Anderson sealed the deal for the Lions by rebounding a blocked shot and sneaking the next one through the Seawolves’ defense.
“Their wingers were able to attack our outside backs, and they were able to use their speed to their advantage at different points throughout the game,” Faherty said.
The Seawolves were unable to capitalize before ultimately losing momentum after halftime. The Lions outshot Stony Brook 10-7 in the second half and 15-9 in the entire game. Senior midfielder Samantha Goodwin led Stony Brook with three shot attempts.
“Unfortunately, when we were playing well, we were unable to score a goal and we gave up a goal,” Faherty said. “It changes the complexion of the game; it gives the other team confidence.”
Despite allowing a pair of goals, Manner finished the game with three saves, giving the freshman 26 saves for the season.
“I thought Sofia played well,” Faherty said. “Like a lot of players there was a lot of things I thought she did well, and I thought there were a couple of things she could have done a little bit better with.”
After starting the season winning two of their first three games, the Seawolves have cooled off and now have a 2-5 overall record. Friday night’s loss was the team’s fourth in a row, including losses against Bryant, Boston College and Dartmouth.
Stony Brook will look to end its four-game losing streak on Thursday, Sept. 14, returning home to host cross-island rival Hofstra at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium at 7 p.m..
