HAMILTON – The Colgate women's soccer team was able to do two things that no other team has done this year on Saturday night. The Raiders not only scored upon a Lehigh team that had yet to give up a goal this season, but also became the first team to beat the Mountain Hawks as Colgate captured a 3-2 thrilling overtime victory in front of a packed house at Beyer-Small '76 Field.
First-year
Abby Sotomayor accounted for two of Colgate's three goals, including the game-winner in overtime. Lehigh took a 2-1 lead in the 86th minute, but senior
Emily Pullen scored just 37 seconds later to force overtime before Sotomayor came up with the golden goal under two minutes into the extra frame.
The Raiders controlled possession in Lehigh's third for a majority of the opening minutes. Sotomayor converted in the 11th minute when she became the first player this season to score upon the Mountain Hawks. After a flurry in front of the net, a deflected ball found Sotomayor who rifled a perfect shot into the upper right-hand corner of the goal over the head of Lehigh keeper Sam Miller to put the Raiders ahead 1-0. The Colgate tally ended Lehigh's scoreless streak of 832:31 dating back to last season.
The Raiders kept the pressure up before Lehigh picked up momentum halfway through the opening term. First-year keeper
Kelly Chiavaro made a huge save on a point-blank shot in the 22nd minute when she punched it over the crossbar, but the Mountain Hawks struck just a few seconds later. Alyssa Riporti sent a dribbler through traffic off a corner kick that Chiavaro wasn't able to find to tie the score at 1-1 in the 22nd minute. Both teams had a few more opportunities in the remainder of the half, but the game went into halftime tied at 1-1.
The second half featured Colgate controlling a majority of the momentum as the Raiders out-shot the Mountain Hawks 7-3 through the first 40 minutes of the half. Lehigh's Sidonie Warnecker put the Mountain Hawks ahead 2-1 in the 86th minute when she connected on a pass from Tori Pantaleo and tapped it into the back of the net.
Pullen answered just 37 seconds later when she sent a rebound shot past the Lehigh keeper to quickly tie the game at 2-2 and send the contest to overtime.
Sotomayor netted the golden goal just 1:43 into overtime when she used some nifty footwork to work her way around a Lehigh defender and fire the ball into the lower left-hand corner of the net to secure the 3-2 Colgate victory.
BOTTOM LINE
WON-LOST RECORDS
- The Raiders improve to 4-3-3 overall and a perfect 2-0-0 in the Patriot League.
- Lehigh falls to 7-1-1 overall and 1-1-0 in league action.
KEY RAIDER INFO
- The Raiders start league play 2-0-0 for the fourth time in the last five years.
- Sotomayor's goals were her team-leading sixth and seventh goals of the season.
- Pullen's goal was her first of the season and second of her career.
- Colgate earned its first overtime victory of the season.
FACTS & FIGURES
- The Raiders finished the game with a 20-8 shot advantage and 9-4 shot on goal edge.
- Colgate also held a 5-3 lead in corner kicks.
- Chiavaro made two saves compared to Miller's six.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Kathy Brawn
- "Lehigh is an outstanding team and we knew that coming in. You don't go that many games undefeated and unscored upon without being a great team. We thought we could do a few specific things that played to our strengths and would work well against them, and sure enough it did. We knew they'd battle back. It says a lot to beat that team and get our second Patriot League win. It was a great team effort from not only the players out on the field, but also the players on the sidelines who gave their heart and soul during training this week."
- "Lehigh scoring in the 86th minute was such a momentum killer, but it says a lot about this team that they came right back. If you have the kind of players that think of that as 'game over', then the game is going to be over. If you have the kind of players that say 'we're going to keep battling and find a way' then you put yourself in a position to win the game. It's a good sign to be able to battle back and get that done."
- "Abby (Sotomayor) had such great composure and patience in a pressure-filled situation on a part of the field where there's the most pressure. That's a big time goal. She just keeps building on the good things that she's doing and it couldn't have been better timing. She's playing better and better as the season goes along."
First-year Abby Sotomayor
- "Every time we step out on the field we want to beat the next opponent and win in the Patriot League. We're not focusing on the other team's record, but it feels really good to get this result against a good Lehigh team."
- "It was great having all the fans come out tonight. We really appreciate that and it really helped us play well tonight."
UP NEXT
- The Raiders are back on the road Wednesday to take on three-time defending Patriot League Champion Boston University.
- Kickoff from BU is set for 7 p.m.
- All information on how to follow along with the game can be found at Game Central.
