Photo courtesy of the Mount Holyoke athletics department
Goalkeeper Zoe Marshall ’17 made ten saves during the course of Tuesday afternoon’s game at Smith College.
BY ANNA BALLOU '20
On a bitterly cold Tuesday afternoon, Mount Holyoke Soccer fought in overtime against local conference rival Smith College. The game took place at the Pioneers’ home field and marked Mount Holyoke’s penultimate game of the regular season. With the 3-2 loss, Mount Holyoke fell to 8-9-0 overall and 2-7-0 in the NEWMAC.
Throughout the game, Mount Holyoke’s offense was led by Sara Sanaú Ruiz ’19, who notched 50 percent of the team’s shots. Defensively, goalkeeper Zoe Marshall ’17 made 10 saves over the course of the game. The Pioneers held the majority in shots and corner kicks, though MHC was able to remain strong under the offensive pressure. The scoring commenced with an unassisted goal from Sanaú Ruiz in the 37th minute, giving MHC a one-goal advantage. All of Smith’s first-half scoring attempts were blocked by Marshall, allowing MHC to maintain its lead.
The second half of the game began with the Pioneers scoring a pair of goals. The first came in the 50th minute from first year Meredith Roberts and the second from senior Jackie Foody in the 78th minute.
Down by a goal and with less than three minutes left in regulation, Mount Holyoke’s McKenna Lamb ’20 received a pass from Marshall, which she sent sailing past Smith’s senior keeper Alanna Lynch to send the game past regulation time. The overtime play began with heavy pressure from the Smith offense, with Marshall making several key stops. It was not until the 96th minute that senior Smith midfielder Innis Hitt converted on a pass from Foody to award Smith the overtime victory.
The Lyons will return to play this coming Saturday when they travel to Worcester Polytechnic Institute for their last game of the season.