Photos By Michael Lipscomb
By Thamoda Haputhanthri
A late penalty kick by Gigi Duncan was all the women’s soccer team needed to survive Stevenson 1-0 on a cold, rainy Wednesday night at Sassafras Field in non-conference action.
The rains heaved on from kickoff until the full whistle, posing tough conditions for the River Hawks, who failed to find the goal in open play despite recording 22 shots, with seven shots on goal.
The first half spelled out utter dominance from the River Hawks (5-4), outshooting Stevenson 17-1. Stevenson (3-2-3) would only grow into the game as the rain would subside, attempting multiple breakaways only to be thwarted by brilliant defense.
Katie Henchy looked unfazed, making two stops all game, to continue her streak of shutouts. It would be late in the game, where a handball by a Stevenson player left the referee with no choice but to point to the spot.
Calm, cool and collected, Gigi Duncan would slot the penalty away into the bottom third.
“I just had to help my team out there and put it in the back of the net, zoned out everything and focused on that for my team,” Duncan said.
“We just needed to come out and play our game for ninety minutes, which we did…I felt that from start to finish, we did what we wanted to do,” SU coach Nick Hoover said.
The win is Susquehanna’s third straight. The River Hawks haven’t allowed a single goal in that span.
