Photo by Alycia Knorr
By Pat McDermott
The Susquehanna Women’s Soccer team faced Juniata this past Wednesday, with both teams battling throughout the game resulting in a 0-0 tie at Sassafras Field.
Despite the Riverhawks (8-3-3 Overall, 1-1-3 Landmark) outshooting the Eagles (5-5-2 Overall, 1-3-2 Landmark) 22-7, they were unable to find the back of the net during the 90 minutes of play.
Susquehanna was in control of possession for the majority of the game, taking 11 shots in each half and earning six corner kicks during the game.
The River Hawks looked to come out the gates hot with five high quality goal opportunities in the first 15 minutes of the game, but to no avail.
Despite the defensive performance by the River Hawks and the quality looks they were getting on offense, the game was 0-0 at halftime.
“There was a stretch where we were a little scattered with our gameplan, which I put more on my shoulders than on the players when we were playing too direct and not enough passes into feet in the final third,” Susquehanna Head Coach Nick Hoover said.
The River Hawks continued to deny Juniata of any offensive rhythm, with key contributions from goalie Katie Henchy and defenders Masie Baker and Shelby Vernon on the back end of the field helping force a shutout.
“I think any time you can shut out any team, that’s a huge positive, especially considering we’d conceded a goal in each of our last four games in conference,” said Hoover.
Susquehanna continued to control the pace of the game, creating more offensive opportunities while limiting Juniata’s chances.
The River Hawks finished with more than three times as many shots as the Eagles, showing their ability to maintain offensive pressure despite being unable to score.
With the season being in the heat of conference play, Susquehanna will look to build on their success as they move forward, still searching for a spot in the landmark conference tournament.
“We aspire to win every game we have remaining on our schedule, and then if we advance to the playoffs, win those too. It won’t be easy, but we truly believe we have the ability to defeat any team we play” Hoover said.
Susquehanna will have another opportunity to move forward in the conference standings, as they play at Moravian this Saturday, Oct 17 at 4p.m.