ALFRED, NY – The Hartwick women's soccer team remained unbeaten in the Empire 8 on Saturday night, drawing Alfred 1-1 on the road in a game that had kickoff delayed by two hours due to transportation issues. The Hawks are now 5-2-4 overall on the year as well as 3-0-2 in the Empire 8, while the Saxons are 8-4-3 for the season and 3-1-1 in conference.
Alfred had the day's first chance, as Karah Landries tried to sneak it in the near side of the goal from the right side of the box but hit the side of the net. The Saxons would dominate play over the opening ten minutes, keeping possession in their offensive end for the bulk of it. That paid off in the ninth minute, as Nyah Solly floated one up and over the head of Sara Staup (Woodinville, WA/Woodinville) from the top of the box for the icebreaker and a 1-0 lead.
Play went back and forth for a while after that, with neither side generating a significant scoring chance for the majority of the remainder of the period. Olivia Gilbert put a scare in Staup after a bad Hartwick turnover, but the junior goalkeeper was able to reach over her head and stop the softly struck ball in the 42nd minute. Wednesday's hero Julia Bono (West Milford, NJ/West Milford Township) had a similar try at the other end of the field, although her effort ended up over the crossbar. At the half, the score was 1-0 to Alfred.
The second half started fairly quietly, with not much in the way of scoring chances from either side. The Hawks changed that in a big way in the 58th minute, knotting the game at 1-all with just over a half-hour to play. Nicole Casab (Utica, NY/T.R. Proctor) took a corner and sent a beautiful ball into the box that Nicole Conway (Chester, NY/Monroe-Woodbury) found and put home for her first collegiate point and goal.
Alfred's Claire Squicciarini took a shot on the rush in the 76th minute, forcing a dive from Staup, but the effort sailed harmlessly wide of the far post. Gilbert made a bid for the lead in the 81st minute, hitting one towards goal. Although it may have been going wide, Staup took the cautious route and saved it out of play for a corner. There was another dangerous ploy by the hosts in the minute 87, as for a moment there was room for a clear-sighted Saxon shot in the box. That room did not last long, however, as the Hartwick back line was able to stop the threat. An even scarier moment appeared with just under two minutes to play, as there was a loose ball in the Hawks' six-yard box. That too was cleared away by 'Wick after a few anxious moments. Ninety minutes would not be enough to decide a winner this evening.
Staup saved the game for the Hawks in the third minute of the first overtime, coming out of her goal to smother the touch of a Saxon forward before she could get a shot away. She had another diving save in the 96th minute, stopping an Abigail Austin effort out for a corner kick. The two sides headed to the second extra period in search of a victor.
Hartwick nearly won it in the third minute of the second overtime. Casab played a short corner to Julia Collado (Whitehouse Station, NJ/Hunterdon), who sent it right back to Casab higher up the pitch. Casab lofted one into the box, where it bounced around and eventually came to the head of Conway for a shot that Hannah Fuller saved. Fuller saved the rebound as well, a Hannah Bochniak (Barneveld, NY/Holland Patent) try. That would be the last significant chance of the game, as the final buzzer rang with 1-1 still on the scoreboard.
Coach Brian Knapp was happy with his team's effort on the evening, saying "I'm thinking of today more as a valuable point rather than valuable points lost. You go into the conference [saying,] 'Where can we get a result?' And [playing] Alfred away with a young team, I'm very happy with a point."
Just three Hawks had multiple shots on the day: Conway led with a career-high three, while Madi McGuire (Goshen, NY/Goshen), and Collado had two each. Staup took care of all 110 minutes in net, making five saves.
'Wick is back to it on Wednesday for another important Empire 8 match, this time at home against Russell Sage. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m.
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