Women's Soccer, Williams defeats Tufts, 1-0
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WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - The last regular season loss for the Williams women's soccer team was on October 21, 2006 at Tufts. Playing under a sheet of heavy rain for most of today’s contest, the Jumbos (7-5-1, 4-3-1) and the Ephs (13- 0-0, 8-0-0) played in a scoreless contest for nearly eighty-six minutes before senior captain Brianna Wolfson tapped in a late-minute goal to stave off a repeat of history.
Since that last 1-0 loss to Tufts in 2006, the Ephs have put together a 41-0-1 regular season record. With a tie or win against Middlebury on Friday, the Ephs will have played three straight seasons of undefeated soccer in the regular season.
“Rain and wind is often the great equalizer in soccer,” said Williams’ head coach Michelyne Pinard. “Our style of play involves us moving the ball, and that becomes hard with this kind of weather. We did a good job of creating opportunities that weren’t always pretty but were effective in the end.”
Williams played one of their most defensive halves of the season, and only out shot the Jumbos, 10-6. The wet, slippery conditions on the field made it difficult to hold onto the ball, which allowed Tufts to have more offensive opportunities than the Ephs might usually allow of their opponents.
The Ephs came out stronger in the second half, out shooting Tufts 17-4 in the second period. Despite the increased offensive attack, the Ephs had trouble converting. At the 37:36 mark, freshman Sam Vilboa took advantage of her own deflected shot right in front of net, but her shot was blocked again by a Jumbos defender. Bret Eisenhart layed her head on the ball for some good looks at goal, while Annelise Snyder ripped a shot that nicked the left post with twelve minutes to play.
Finally, at the 85:58 mark, the Ephs found the back of the net. Fellow senior captain Sarah Walmsley played a cross from the right side that was deflected by the Jumbos keeper at the right post. The ball sailed behind her, allowing Wolfson to capitalize on an empty net and tap the ball in for the 1-0 lead.
“In the first half, we were worried about the skip of the ball,” continued Pinard. “We gained confidence in the second half and that showed in the number of opportunities we had later on.”
The Ephs will travel to Middlebury this Friday to close out the regular season. Game time is set for 2:00 p.m.
