Following a painful 6-0 loss at New Hampshire on Sunday to open up its 2015 America East season, the Binghamton women’s soccer team headed into Albany on Thursday evening in search of a little relief.
Six matches into its seven-game road stretch, the Bearcats had been outscored, 16-1, by their opponents — only netting two goals throughout the month of September. So when junior midfielder Alyssa Falinski scored BU’s first goal since Sept. 13 on the Great Danes it showed a spark in an offense that had so far struggled to ignite. But Binghamton couldn’t keep the flame going on the road against its conference rival, losing, 2-1, to drop its ninth straight match.
“Tonight was a real big step,” Binghamton head coach Sarah McClellan said. “Not only offensively, but defensively the team really worked together, and it created some great chances for us. We were able to dictate the play and it looked great out there. We’re a little heartbroken for the team because our girls played so hard.”
The Binghamton attack started the match strong, outshooting its host, 3-1, in the game’s opening minutes and forcing two saves along the way. Albany responded by forcing sophomore goalkeeper Katie Hatziyianis to collect her first save of the day in the 17th minute, but Binghamton continued with its offensive barrage throughout the first half. After being outshot, 6-2, by the 43rd minute of play, the Great Danes made the last shot of the half a meaningful one. Albany junior forward Alexa Schneider opened scoring in the match with a late first-half rebound goal before playing out the stretch to close the first half up, 1-0, against BU.
To open up the second 45, Schneider tried for a second time at the BU goal before being picked off by Hatziyianis for her second save of the day. Through the next 20 minutes of the half, Binghamton outshot Albany, 5-2, and — perhaps more importantly — took a 3-0 advantage in corner kick opportunities. On the Bearcats’ third chance from the corner in the 69th minute, Falinski’s kick curled inside the left goal post to tie the match at one. But the equalizer didn’t even the keel for long as Albany reclaimed the lead just four minutes later after sophomore forward Vivian Vega scored on another deflected opportunity.
“We were a little bit unlucky with the two goals there — but I think other than that we looked good,” McClellan said.
Despite getting five more chances at the Great Danes’ net, Vega’s goal was the nail in the coffin to put BU away 2-1 and keep Binghamton winless on the road in 2015. Despite the result, Binghamton showed signs of a team toughened by the road, keeping Albany on its heels for a full 90 minutes.
“Team defense was very strong, attacking rhythm was better, so the final step will be finishing most of our chances,” McClellan said. “We’re creating them now so now we’re gonna have the opportunity to finish them.”
Binghamton is set to return home to face Hartford on Sunday. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Bearcats Sports Complex in Vestal, New York.