Box Score ROCHESTER, N.Y. (Oct. 9, 2015) - Tasked with facing an offense that ranks inside the top-20 in all of Division II women's soccer in goals per game, the Molloy College women's soccer team were unable to halt Roberts Wesleyan as the Redhawks claimed a 5-1 victory Friday evening in Rochester.
The Lions (4-4-2, 1-2-0 ECC) came into the night with a game plan to try and limit Roberts Wesleyan (8-2-1, 4-0 ECC) offensively, and the plan nearly worked in the first 150 seconds of the contest as Molloy freshman
Allie Rainey (Smithtown, N.Y.) took the first shot of the match. Rainey's attempt was stopped by freshman keeper Mary Kate Eckert (Honeoye Falls, N.Y.) and the hosts went on the offensive attack against junior goalie
Gabrielle Batista (Hicksville, N.Y.). Senior forward Brittany Houghton (Webster, N.Y.) netted the game's first goal at the 3:43 mark of the contest, her tenth goal of the season to put Roberts Wesleyan ahead. Molloy directed three shots goalward in the next 13 minutes, but attempts by freshman
Amanda Milazzo (Setauket, N.Y.) and senior
Shannon Murphy (North Babylon, N.Y.) were swept away by Eckert. Additionally, senior forward
Alicia Mercurio (Williston Park, N.Y.) had her shot blocked before reaching the goal.
Roberts Wesleyan connected on another strike, this time off the foot of junior forward Bella Mitrevski (Rochester, N.Y.) in the 17th minute of play. Mitrevski's 11th goal of the season gave the Redhawks a 2-0 edge that they would hold through the rest of the first half. The Lions came close to cutting the deficit in half just before the first act of the game expired, but junior forward
Danielle Valente (South Setauket, N.Y.) could not bury a shot off of a corner kick from
Mariella Gotti (Valley Stream, N.Y.) as Eckert made her fourth save of the contest. At the onset of the second half, the home side took to the offense again, peppering Batista with a multitude of chances. The Redhawks converted an opportunity off of a corner kick from Mitrevski, as sophomore midfielder Samantha Moreno (Mexico City, Mexico) slotted a goal home off of an assist by senior defender Miranda Colon (North Chili, N.Y.) with 35 minutes to play. Junior defender Teara Thomas (Sandys, Bermuda) enhanced the lead to four with a tally at the 69:03 mark of the second half, but Mercurio quickly cut the lead back to three with her first goal of the season off of an assist by junior midfielder
Jessica Malone (Long Beach, N.Y.). That would be all the offense Molloy mustered as Mitrevski collected her second goal of the game late to cap the scoring account in the match.
Roberts Wesleyan outshot Molloy 11-10 despite facing an 8-2 deficit in shots after 45 minutes of play. The maroon and white had plenty of opportunities in the contest with four corner kicks to just one by the Redhawks. Mercurio took a team-high four shots while Valente steered both of her attempts on goal in the losing effort.
The Molloy College women's soccer team will conclude its Western New York venture by heading to Amherst for a showdown with Daemen on Sunday (Oct. 11). Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.
