Down 1-0 in the second half, you had the feeling that the women's soccer team was destined to score a goal.
It just never happened.
Against Rutgers last night at Princeton Stadium, the Tigers (5-1 overall, 2-0 Ivy League) seemed on the verge of finally putting a shot past Scarlet Knight goalkeeper Christine Caldwell. Princeton had spent much of the second half in Rutgers' side of the field, pressuring the defense and appearing to be only one quick shot away from tying the score.
Then, with only 30 seconds remaining, senior forward Amee Reyes finally broke free from the crowd in front of the Scarlet Knight goal and put a solid header on the ball. The ball went over the outstretched hands of Caldwell and the game seemed bound for overtime.
However, the ball bounced off the crossbar. Rutgers (4-3-2) recovered possession and cleared the ball to end Princeton's chance to prolong the game.
The Tigers dominated the second half, earning seven corner kicks and firing five shots on net. The problem was in the failure to put those opportunities into the back of the net — a problem the Princeton offense has faced all season.
"We took our offensive opportunities for granted," Reyes said. "I don't think we put enough pressure on ourselves to score early in the game. This shows you can't just play for 45 minutes."
Cold start
While the Tigers managed to mount a furious attack in those second 45 minutes, the first half was a different story as Princeton came out slightly lethargic on the cold, windy evening.
"We let them have too much space in the midfield in the first half," head coach Julie Shackford said. "The offensive push was just a little too late."
In that first half, Rutgers became the first team this season to put a shot behind senior goalie Jordan Rettig and the Tiger defense, which had gone the first 483 minutes of the season without allowing a goal.
That goal scorer was Scarlet Knight forward Keri Lages, who took a pass from midfield and lofted a high shot over Rettig from the top of the penalty box to give Rutgers the only goal of the game.
"The defense was a little sloppy in the beginning, and it cost us," junior defender Kelly Sosa said. "Losing the streak [of not giving up a goal] might be a blessing in disguise, though."
While Princeton did not dominate the first half, the Tiger offense was not entirely silent in that stanza. Sophomore forward Krista Ariss had the best chance when she was able to break free from her defender on the left side in the ninth minute and get a point-blank shot on net, which she fired into the chest of Caldwell. The Scarlet Knight netminder was then able to cover up the rebound before streaking sophomore forward Alex Fiore could pounce on the ball.
Fiore had her own opportunity nine minutes later, when Caldwell again made a save on a shot from close range.
"We should have converted a few of our chances early," Shackford said. "An early goal can make all the difference."
The Tigers will take this loss as motivation as they continue their Ivy season this Saturday at Columbia.
"We'll be ready on Saturday," Sosa said. "This is not going to happen to us again."
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