GREENSBORO, N.C. – The strong offensive mindset of the Harvard Crimson proved too much for UNC Greensboro (UNCG) women's soccer team in its first meeting in program history on Friday night, which ended in a 4-0 victory for the Crimson.
The Crimson outshot the Spartans 12-5, seven of which were on frame and prompting senior goalkeeper
Abby Buchholz to make three strong saves.
How it Happened:
The beginning of the first half showed an even matchup between the Spartans and the Crimson. Both teams flexed their defensive capabilities, shutting down any offensive hope from either end.
Harvard was quick to break through UNCG's backline however, with the Crimson's Ainsley Ahmadian penetrating through and placing the ball neatly into the left corner of the goal for a 1-0 advantage at 12:33. The Crimson extended their lead to 2-0 with a penalty goal scored by Audrey Francois who placed her shot to the right of Buchholz. But Harvard did not stop there, as the Crimson extended their lead three to nil by halftime with a cheeky play which led to Nicola Golen finding the back of the net with help from Francois.
The second half started with a strong, energetic Spartan side seeming to have control. The tables quickly turned, however, when in the 48th minute the Crimson scored their fourth and final goal. The rest of the match showed just how strong both backlines are, with freshman
Sophie Joly and junior
Parker Sikora of the Spartans making many key defensive moves.
By the Numbers:
- Senior
Abby Buchholz tallied three saves in the first half.
- The Spartans recorded five shots, four of which were on goal.
Records:
- UNCG: 2-2-1, 0-0-0 SoCon
- Harvard: 3-0-0, 0-0-0 Ivy
Head Coach Michael Coll on the game
"Harvard was very good today and we weren't quite up for the challenge of dealing with their speed and technical superiority. Today was a backwards step for us but we can't overthink it because in six days, we go again versus High Point who also took a pretty heavy defeat in their game yesterday. We didn't provide enough effort and fight today, and Harvard wasn't pushed to get out of second gear so we'll learn from this match and use this lesson to get better moving ahead."
Up Next
The Spartans will travel down the road to High Point, N.C. to take on the High Point Panthers on Thursday, September 8th at 7 pm.
