Late rally comes up just short

In the world of sports, it's not over until it's over. This holds true, especially for soccer. In many cases one goal is enough to make the difference, and a goal can be scored in a split second.

But it wasn't a lucky day for the women's soccer team, as a single-goal difference resulted in a Tiger loss. Three goals from Columbia (6-4-3 overall, 3-0-1 Ivy League) — two coming within 10 minutes after the start of the second half — were enough to secure the hosts their first victory over Princeton (4-7-1, 0-4) in eight years.

The Lions got on the score sheet first just under four minutes into the game, when they fired in a pass down the left to forward Sophie Reiser. Reiser then skinned a defender and beat junior goalkeeper Maren Dale to put the Lions ahead, 1-0.

The Tigers responded with vigor, firing six shots during the remainder of the half while their counterparts only managed to record one. Princeton's efforts were rewarded just before halftime as sophomore forward Allison Williams earned a penalty kick with two minutes remaining. Junior midfielder Diana Matheson calmly scored, as she sent the ball inside the right post and out of the reach of Columbia's goalkeeper, Allison Vespa.

It was an uphill battle for the Orange and Black after halftime, however, as the hosts scored back-to-back goals shortly after the game resumed. The scorer of the first goal, Reiser, set up both goals as the Lions left the Tigers trailing by two by the 58th minute.

Princeton then used seven substitutions as it fought hard to come back from behind. Columbia also struggled to retain its lead and used six substitutions of its own. Both sides recorded five shots each after the two goals from the Lions, and the second half was certainly a tight battle, with Princeton recording six fouls to Columbia's four.

Princeton's hopes of a comeback were dwindling as the game went into its last 10 minutes. The Tigers pressed their opponents hard but failed to find any end product. It was at this crucial stage that sophomore defender Taylor Numann found the net and rejuvenated the Tigers. At 81:42, Numann hammered home a Matheson free kick, scoring her first goal of the season.

Despite the late resurgence, Princeton failed to find any further late-game heroics, and the score remained at 3-2 as the Tigers recorded their fourth loss in the Ivy League competition.

"I thought in the last 10 minutes, we stepped it up a lot and we made a good effort to tie it up," Matheson said. "But unfortunately it was just the last 10 minutes."

The final score belies the content of the game, and the Tigers were somewhat unlucky to lose. While Columbia had 11 shots throughout the game, Princeton had 14, and nine of them were shots on goal, while the hosts only manage to record four shots on goal. It was a busy night for Vespa, as she threw herself again and again to deny the Tigers, recording seven saves in the process. Dale recorded one save in the game. Columbia had seven corner kicks while Princeton had two.

The Lions' win put them just two points behind Dartmouth, which stands at the top of the league with a 4-0 record.

The Tigers' next game is today in Washington, D.C., as they look to bounce back against American in the last non-conference game of the season. After that, the team will return home to host Harvard this Saturday in what will be a fiery clash as Princeton looks to find positive results in the latter stages of its campaign.