American University’s women’s soccer team played Patriot League rival Colgate to a 2-2 draw on Sept. 25. This kept AU from earning its first conference win of the year.
The Eagles found themselves with an early lead after a foul on Colgate’s Sage DiGiullio resulted in a free kick. AU took advantage of this opportunity with sophomore Emily Smith lofting a shot over the defenders’ wall for the first goal of the contest in the 26th minute.
The Eagles’ momentum continued with 11 minutes remaining in the first half whensenior Samm Franucci placed the ball well above the keepers’ hands, giving AU its second goal.
AU’s energetic first half seemed, at times, overwhelming to the Raiders’ defense, propelling the Eagles to an early lead.
“We’ve been targeting coming out strong in the first half and having energy from the first whistle,” said AU’s head coach Anabel Hering, “and I think that they gave that to us in the first half.”
The two teams combined for a total of 15 fouls. Of those 15 fouls, nine occurred in the first half. With less than 10 minutes left before halftime, AU committed two fouls, both resulting in free kicks.
Colgate’s first free kick rang off the goal post. A minute later, a shot from Colgate’s Ruby Diodati off of another free kick ended up in the back of the net, giving Colgate its first goal of the match.
“I think we kind of expected [physical play],” Hering said. “It’s long lived between Colgate and us. We knew they were aggressive, so we knew that we had to match it.”
Defense was present at the start of the second half. By the 76th minute, AU had faced eight shots, three of which were on goal. Colgate’s ninth shot off DiGiulio’s foot and crossed the goal line, tying the game 2-2.
During the overtime period, the Eagles struggled to mount an offensive attack, recording only one shot in the overtime periods. Colgate controlled the ball well and got seven shots on the Eagles, but still failed to score.
Colgate out shot AU 27-7, but their offensive attack did not overwhelm AU senior goalkeeper Amy Krotine. Krotine recorded 10 saves in the contest and kept the ball out of the net with some brilliant play.
“She’s just been really consistent lately,” Hering said of Krotine. “She got her shot and opportunity and she took it and that’s all we can ask from every player.”
The Eagles next see action on Wednesday against Patriot League opponent Loyola, where the Eagles will play for their first conference win.
tgray@theeagleonline.com
