The DePauw University women’s soccer team collected their fourth loss of the season in a 1-0 defeat to Kenyon College on Saturday.
Kenyon advanced to 4-5-1 overall, while the Tigers fell to 5-4-1 on the season record. DePauw dominated the majority of the game, but the lone goal of the match was scored by Kenyon only 1:18 minutes into the match. Kenyon senior Maggie Smith struck the ball from 30 yards out, hitting it just out of reach of DePauw senior goalkeeper Riley Riordan. Despite the high intensity play by the Tigers, the team was unable to find the back of the net for the rest of the game.
DePauw fired a total of 11 shots throughout the game, with 6 being on goal. Kenyon hit a total of 6 shots, 4 on goal. DePauw took a total of 4 corner kicks, none were turned into goals. Kenyon only took one corner kick.
The Tigers came close to tying up the match with a mere 90 seconds left to play. Junior forward Kat Ruark bridged the ball across the front of the net in hopes that first-year forward Shaili Kumar would finish it, but it was just a little too far in front for her to reach. The Tigers lost possession of the ball for the remaining minute and could not get it back, leaving the match at a 1-0 upset.
Despite the loss, DePauw players did not feel defeated. Senior defender Lexy Burton acknowledged the team’s resilience. “Although everyone was upset with the loss, our team is more cohesive than ever before,” Burton said, “We are ready to bounce back from our loss on Saturday and put in the work in practice this week leading up to our next conference game.”
Senior forward, Liz Fraser, expressed her dissatisfaction about the outcome, but still held a positive mindset. “It was extremely disappointing, just from a win-loss standpoint, but I think as a team we took a lot away from it,” Fraser said, “We need to finish more, but tactically, I think we played very well.”
Sophomore defender Rachel Galullo has a plan in mind as the team moves forward. “There will be a greater focus on being dedicated from the very beginning of the game to the end, as well as a greater effort to pick up our momentum,” Galullo said, “With those in mind, we will start picking up wins again.”
Kenyon is now 2-0 in the NCAC Conference, while DePauw holds 1-1 on the record.
The Tigers travel to Hiram College on Saturday in the hopes of picking up their second conference win.