By Pat Delp Staff writer
The Susquehanna women’s soccer team improved to 2-0 in conference and 8-2 overall as the River Hawks cruised past conference rival Goucher by a score of 3-0.
The River Hawks’ defense was suffocating, holding their opponent to just three shots. Senior goalie Jordyn Slocum recorded her second shutout of the fall with just one save. It was Susquehanna’s second straight shut out as the defense seemed to really coming together as the team continued to play well.
Senior forward Ashley Rose Lynn explained what the team’s most important aspect has been during their run.
“The leadership among our coaching staff truly filters down throughout our program, and because they believe in us it helps us to believe in ourselves,” she said. “We root for one another on and off the field and genuinely want our teammates to find successes in the small plays every day and it helps us execute on the big plays on game day.”
The River Hawks were able to put up three goals within an 11-minute span. The first goal came in the 24th minute by junior midfielder Grayclynn Juckes off an assist from junior midfielder Mairead Ruane.
Just eight minutes later Ruane scored a goal of her own to put Susquehanna up 2-0. Senior defender Alex Edelman assisted on the score.
Junior midfielder Chloe Eisenhuth finished off the scoring for the day by netting the third goal and final goal for the River Hawks. Edelman assisted on the final goal.
The squad took 25 total shots with 12 on goal in combination with five corner kicks.
In the coach’s preseason poll, Susquehanna was projected to finish in sixth place, while Goucher was picked to finish in fifth. The River Hawks took the low ranking as motivation going into the season.
“We used this as motivation because we know we were better than our record showed last year, and we have a new year to prove everyone wrong in our conference that we are a different team and one that should be a threat to the conference,” Edelman said.
On Oct. 5, the River Hawks posted their fourth shutout in five games, this time against Delaware Valley.
Susquehanna came away with a 2-0 victory, with Juckes scoring the game-winner with just 29 minutes remaining. Sophomore midfielder Kate Cantrell added another goal as insurance with just under 13 minutes left.
The team will play on Oct. 8 when it hosts conference foe Scranton at 1 p.m.
