On Saturday, the women’s soccer team opened the season with a 5-0 defeat at Little Three rival Williams, who entered the game ranked number one in New England and third nationally. The Ephs’ ranking did not intimidate the Cards, however, who set out to avenge a string of tough losses and snag their first win against the Ephs since 1982.
The game began as a stalemate for the first thirteen minutes until Williams scored its first goal of the afternoon. The Ephs continued to pressure Wesleyan’s defense for the remainder of the half, scoring at 29:04 and 42:25. Williams continued its scoring domination in the second half, adding two more goals for a final tally of 5-0. The Cardinals barely had time to focus on their own forward end thanks to the strength of the Williams attack. Nine different players were involved in Williams’ scoring onslaught, and the Eph women demonstrated their offensive depth with an array of strong shots. The Ephs outshot the Cardinals by a 24-6 margin and maintained ball control for the vast majority of the game. The victory was also Williams’ third straight shutout win over Wesleyan.
Even with a tough season opener against one of the strongest teams in the nation, the Cardinals have time to recover and rebuild. Accordingly, the team remains optimistic about is prospects for the season.
“The team is excited for the season,” said co-captain Beth Kenworthy ’10. “We have a solid mix of returning players and incoming freshmen. In regards to Saturday’s game, we still need to figure some things out on the field, but once we do, we are going to have a great season with some great results.”
The Cardinals are returning with a strong roster. The Wesleyan women boast 15 experienced returnees, including 13 letterwinners and four seniors. Co-captains Kenworthy and Alisha Neptune ’10, who started in all of last season’s 14 game, offer leadership on and off the field. The Redbirds also return senior midfielder Taylor Stevenson ’10, who was named second-team all-NESCAC last season. The Cardinals also have depth among their younger returnees: last year’s leading scorer, Hilary Biggs ’12, also returns to help spark the offense this fall.
The team will look to regain its stride on Wednesday, when the Cardinals travel to Smith for their second straight road game. Wesleyan trounced the Pioneers 2-0 last season, just its second win against Smith since 1997.
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