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Women’s Soccer Defeats Boston College, Surges into NCAA Second Round

On Saturday night, Princeton (14-3-1 overall, 6-0-1 Ivy League) dominated Boston College (11-7-2 overall, 5-3-2 ACC) by a final score of 4-2, taking full advantage of the team’s first NCAA tournament berth since 2012. The dynamic offensive duo of freshman forward Mimi Asom and junior forward Tyler Lussi powered the Tigers to a poignant victory, with each scoring two goals.

Heading into the game, both teams were closely matched in NCAA rankings with Princeton at No. 34 and the Eagles closely behind at No. 38. Despite the affinity in rankings, the two teams hadn’t faced since 2004 when Princeton won 2-0.

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For the Tigers,Friday’sgame marked the first women’s NCAA game held in Roberts Stadium. In turn, Princeton kicked off to the support of a raucous crowd and supple home field advantage on the historic night.

At first, in contrast to buzzing crowd, the first half began to a relatively quiet offense start. Then, in the 23rdminute, freshman forward and unanimous Ivy League Rookie of the Year Mimi Asom capitalized on a corner kick to give Princeton the first point.

Yet, Asom was not done. With10:08left in the first half, the freshman forward netted a second goal to give the Tigers a commanding 2-0 lead. In doing so, Asom also tied herself with Linda DeBoer ‘86 for most goals scored by a freshman in Princeton history.

Asom’s two dominant goals soon triggered an offensive frenzy. Shortly afterwards, Boston College’s McKenzie Meehan responded with a goal of her own, bringing the Eagles within one. In return, Lussi, 2-time offensive player of the year, scored with just over three minutes left in the half, sending the crowd into a victorious roar and giving the Tigers a confident 3-1 lead.

In a night of records, Lussi’s late goal elevated her to second in all-time Princeton scoring, behind only Esmeralda Negron ’05.

By halftime, the game had proven itself to be a battle between the two teams’ top offensive players: Asom and Lussi for the Tigers and Meehan for the Eagles. The team’s top two scorers had come through for Princeton in clutch play.

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Even with the lead, the Tigers could not rest as the Eagles had established themselves as potent second-half players. In fact, throughout the season, the Eagles outscored their opponents 24-11 in the second half alone.

In resposne, the Tigers wasted no time to score a 4thgoal five minutes into the second half. Lussi once again confirmed her offensive prowess as she capitalized on a deadly corner kick. The goal also tied Boston College’s season record for most points allowed in a match.

Hidden in the shadows behind the star-studded explosion of Asom and Lussi was senior defender Emily Sura. As one of two current seniors on the 2012 NCAA run, Sura assisted three of Princeton’s four goals.

Similarly, the Princeton defense formed an impenetrable wall against the Eagle offense. The combination of tight defense and clutch saves from junior goal keeper Hannah Winner kept the Eagles scoreless through the majority of the second half.

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Following a volley of desperate shot attempts in the final minutes of the second half, the Eagles' Lauren Berman finally netted a goal. However, the effort proved futile to Princeton’ commanding lead. As the final seconds on the clock diminished to zero, players and fans erupted to celebrate Princeton’s second round berth.

Moving forward, the Tigers will travel to the University of Virginia campus to face USCon Friday.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated Tyler Lussi's class year. She is a junior. The 'Prince' regrets the error.