First Half Action Sends Corsairs past Lancers

Worcester, MA- The Worcester State Women's Soccer team traveled to their last out of conference game of the season to play UMass-Dartmouth at 7pm Tuesday night. Despite the constant pressure from the Lancers, a penalty kick early in the game sent them away with a 1-0 loss. 

As the game began, Worcester State marked tight and denied the Corsairs from knocking the ball around in the midfield. Worcester defended well against their short goal kicks and worked to win the 50/50 balls. A penalty in the box against the Lancers in the 11th minute put the Corsairs up early at 1-0. The Lancers did not want to concede early and immediately went on the offensive with three balls hit off the Corsair's crossbar in the first half, and first year Olivia Magierowski (Brimfield, MA) led the team in shots with 5 in the first half.

The Lancers looked optimistic heading into the second half as they surged ahead and kept the pressure high, looking to grab an equalizing goal. Worcester had numerous shot opportunities but UMass-Dartmouth played aggressively and 16 fouls were awarded to them, including two yellows for the Corsairs and one yellow for the Lancers as Worcester strived to find the back of the net. Senior Captain Riley Patenaude (Pepperell, MA) blocked a shot on the goal line after a bobbled ball found its way to the feet of a Corsair at the top of the box to preserve the one goal game. Although Worcester outshot UMass-Dartmouth 22-8, the game ended in a 1-0 loss as the Lancers were unable to find just the right combination to find the ball in the netting in the goal. 

The Lancers (4-8-2, 4-2) have one more regular season game, hosting Mass Maritime for their senior night honoring seniors Hayley MacNeil (Lancaster, MA) and Riley Patenaude at 7pm to kick off Worcester State's homecoming weekend.