Photo by Andrea Beganskas
Sarah Wandor
Sports Editor
The Franciscan University of Steubenville women’s soccer team came back for the win against the Bethany College Bisons 4-1 at home on Saturday, March 13.
Bethany College came out with energy and scored a goal in the first minutes of the game, putting them ahead early on by one.
The Lady Barons were not willing to hand over the game and came back with a shot from senior forward Kaitrin O’Leary. The shot went wide but was followed by another from O’Leary that was saved by the Bethany goalie.
The Lady Barons began to play more aggressively and dominated the game keeping the ball in Bethany’s end.
The Lady Barons moved ball, keeping their opponents on their toes, and had many opportunities but the Bethany defense held them back. An opportunity could have tied the game by a shot from sophomore midfield Jess Munoz but was blocked by the defense.
The Lady Barons continued to assail Bethany with shot after shot, not letting up even for a minute. Their efforts paid off with seven minutes left in the first half of the game with a perfect goal by senior midfield Sarah Cocozza, with an assist by O’Leary, bringing the score to a tie.
The Lady Barons continued to bring the fire and refused to let up the pressure on their opponents. A penalty kick by Cocozza put the team in the lead, bringing the score to 2-1.
Bethany tried to keep up and even the score with a shot but senior goalkeeper Marita Ostrich kept the Lady Barons in the lead with a save.
With five minutes left in the game, senior midfield Claire Dawyot skillfully maneuvered around three defenders and scored, putting the team even further in the lead.
Then sophomore forward Bella Rubino passed to Dawyot with only four seconds left and she scored, bringing the final score of the game to 4-1.
Head coach Sarah Salamida said, “We played well and had a ton of opportunities. Claire Dawyot saw we needed a couple of goals and she put them in the back of the net. Sarah Cocozza really stepped up in the midfield, had some really creative plays. Both of them brought a lot of attention towards the goal.”
The Lady Barons look forward to their next home game against Case Western Reserve University on Saturday, March 20 at 1 p.m.