Women's Soccer: Close game ends with double-OT heartbreak

Early in the first half on Saturday, the women’s soccer team was on pace to pick up its first conference win of the season. But after taking a 1-0 lead, the Tigers (3-6-1 overall, 0-2 Ivy League) were unable to close the door, eventually falling 2-1 to Dartmouth (5-4, 2-0) in double overtime.

“This is a difficult loss to process, because we did play well. We did everything right except put the ball in the back of the net,” senior defender and tri-captain Melissa Seitz said. “After our first goal, we had other great chances to make the game 2-0 or 3-0, and we just didn’t put it away.”

In the 14th minute, freshman midfielder Caitlin Blosser headed the ball past the Dartmouth goalkeeper off a set-piece kick from freshman midfielder Stephanie Iantorno. It was the first goal of Blosser’s season and career. Unfortunately for the Tigers, the lead didn’t last.

Dartmouth bounced back quickly and put pressure on the Princeton defense. After the goal, the Big Green earned three corners and put a shot on target between the 24th and 25th minute before tying the score in the 27th.

The ebb and flow of the game intensified after the Dartmouth goal, and Princeton began to show more urgency. Three substitutions by the Tigers between the 29th and 30th minutes added some fresh legs to the pitch, allowing the Tigers to increase pressure on the attacking side. Princeton outshot Dartmouth, 4-1, to finish the period and outshot Dartmouth, 8-3, for the entire half but was unable to turn those extra shots into a goal.

The second half started off with less-than-stellar play, missed shots by both sides and several fouls. Dartmouth managed to get a few shots on goal as the period went on, but great play from junior goalie Alyssa Pont negated the 8-2 shot differential in Dartmouth’s favor for the second period.

“Their goal put them right back into the game. We fought and battled for every ball,” Seitz said. “We really should have come out with a win. Losing in overtime is really one of the worst feelings ever. Last year, we were always the ones coming out on top in overtime, but this year we really are just getting unlucky.”

The Tigers got through the first overtime period without conceding a goal, and they managed a few shots of their own. Relentless pressure by Dartmouth in the second overtime period, however, led to a 113th-minute goal that extinguished the Tigers’ hope of a win.

While Princeton has not been able to replicate the early results that brought it a share of the Ivy League championship last year, it has shown a consistent commitment to the attack and recent improvement on defense. Though this was the first game this season in which the Tigers were outshot by their opponents, the ability of Princeton’s defense to keep the team in the game indicates that the Tigers are slowly improving and coming together.

“We are 0-2 in the Ivy League, but we are not even close to giving up,” Seitz said. “It is all coming together bit by bit, and we need to continue to work hard and enjoy the game we are so passionate about.”

The Tigers look to bounce back tonight as they take on American at 7 p.m. at Roberts Stadium.