In both of its games last week, the Binghamton women’s soccer team sought to prove its reputation as a team whose strength lies in its defense. In Thursday’s 1-0 loss to Lafayette (2-0-1), the Bearcats’ back line allowed just five shots. In Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Buffalo (1-2-1), junior goalkeeper Katie Hatziyianis recorded a series of impressive saves. But in both games, BU’s defense faltered early by allowing goals within the first eight minutes.
“We were a little bit late to some 50-50s, our defending was a little bit soft at times and I give credit to Lafayette,” BU head coach Neel Bhattacharjee said. “They stuck to their game plan; they moved the ball well.”
Just over seven minutes into Thursday’s home-opener against Lafayette, senior midfielder Monica Weiss headed a corner kick past Hatziyianis into the left corner of the net. Following the early tally, Binghamton (1-1-2) allowed just two more shots in the half and four more in the game. Although they improved defensively as the game progressed, the Bearcats failed to pose an offensive threat in the first half.
Following the half, BU gained possession more frequently but was stifled by the Leopards’ defense, which often intercepted passes and closed down any attacks that made it near their back line. In the 61st minute, freshman defender Lauren Spinnato recorded the Bearcats’ only shot on goal of the night, but it was saved by Lafayette senior goalkeeper Danielle Sedillo.
Bhattacharjee credits the increased pressure to adjustments that the Bearcats made between periods.
“We went with a little more pace up top and then once it got later in the game, we got a little more direct,” he said. “When that happened, we were able to put a little bit more pressure on them. We hit the crossbar and were able to challenge the goalie a bit, but weren’t able to get one in the goal.”
In Sunday’s draw with Buffalo, Binghamton also got in an early hole when the Bulls’ redshirt freshman Carissima Cutrona scored on a breakaway.
BU responded in the 30th minute when sophomore forward Patty Loonie headed a corner kick from redshirt junior back Michele Galvin for her second goal of the season.
According to Bhattacharjee, the first-half goal changed the tone of the rest of the game.
“We’ve been working on set pieces; to have that [goal] come off of a corner kick was great,” Bhattacharjee said. “It certainly gave us confidence through the rest of the first half and it felt like that really spiraled into the second half and beyond.”
The remainder of the match was a scoreless battle that stretched into two overtime periods. Buffalo grabbed control of the attack and never let go, tallying 15 shots in the second half alone. BU’s offense managed just three shots that half. The Bearcats’ response to Buffalo’s relentless attack was by far the strongest aspect of their game. Hatziyianis made eight saves throughout the match, including six after the first half.
“[Hatziyianis] is capable of doing that, of pulling off some game-changing saves, which she did and our back line did really well,” Bhattacharjee said.
Despite not getting the win, Bhattacharjee believes the Bearcats’ play on Sunday speaks volumes about their improvements from last year and their potential moving forward.
“This was a statement for us,” he said. “We don’t talk about last year very much, but we did bring up this one, because last year Buffalo took it to them and it was a 3-0 scoreline. For us to have a chance, we really had to compete along with them.”
The Bearcats are set to return to action on Friday against Manhattan. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. from Gaelic Park in the Bronx, New York.