HARTFORD, Conn. – Leah Lewis scored her first goal of the season and Colgate jumped out to an early lead, but Connecticut prevailed with a pair of second-half goals to come away with a 2-1 victory on Sunday night at Hartford's Al-Marzook Field.
Colgate (0-3-1) took advantage of its first scoring opportunity to claim an early edge.
Ruby Diodati lined a corner kick into the box, where Lewis connected on a one-timer and drilled it into the back of the net in the 12th minute.
The corner kick followed a Connecticut foul in the box.
Abby Sotomayor was awarded the penalty kick, which was saved on a diving attempt by Randi Palacios. But Diodati and Lewis made the home team pay on the ensuing corner to stake the Raiders out front.
Kelly Chiavaro picked up her first save in the 20th minute and it was a big one. She left her feet to knock away a set piece from 25 yards out by Duda Santin. The shot was headed toward the upper left corner, but Chiavaro dove and deflected it high and out of play.
Sage DiGiulio had a pair of shots misfire wide but Connecticut maintained possession through the latter stage of the period. The Huskies had five corner kicks in the stanza but only mustered two shots on goal and Chiavaro snared both to maintain the 1-0 Raider lead at intermission.
Connecticut (2-1-1) quickly leveled the match just over six minutes into the second frame. Kess Elmore sent a cross into the box and Sofia Leone struck a low shot inside the far post to beat Chiavaro for the equalizer.
Sydney Maxson came away with Colgate's best chance in the 68th minute after
Dom DeMarco was fouled roughly 30 yards out. Maxson fired a set piece in that twirled just wide. She forced a save just minutes later as the Raiders picked up pressure.
Colgate's attack could not be sustained, and Connecticut took its first lead in the 78th minute. Jacqueline Harnett spun a corner kick into the box and Rachel Marchini answered for the go-ahead goal with just under 12 minutes left in regulation.
Maxson had the Raiders' final opportunity just over a minute later as a result of a Connecticut foul. Her set piece shot was fired in, forcing Palacios to jump high but she snagged the ball in traffic to prevent further damage.
The Huskies contained Colgate in the waning minutes to secure the victory.
BOTTOM LINE
Connecticut 2, Colgate 1
QUOTES
Head Coach Kathy Brawn
On the game:
"We showed great tenacity through the 90 minutes tonight. Leah's first time strike off Ruby's corner was outstanding.
"Although we come away without a win, we displayed some high-level play versus a strong Connecticut side, which will serve us well moving forward."
NOTABLES
- Connecticut held a 20-7 advantage in shots and led shots on goal, 7-4.
- Corners were 8-1 in favor of the Huskies.
- Chiavaro tallied a season-high five saves in the effort.
- Lewis' goal was her fourth career marker.
- Diodati has now picked up an assist in back-to-back games, matching her season total from 2018.
- All three of Colgate's defeats this season have been by one goal.
- In 11 head-to-head meetings, this was the first game decided by one goal since 1994.
UP NEXT
Colgate stays on the road to compete in the Music City Invitational next weekend hosted by Vanderbilt. The Raiders take on the Commodores at 7:30 p.m. (CT) on Friday before facing Lipscomb on Sunday at noon.
