SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Sophomore forward Camila Leiva (Warwick, R.I.) broke a 2-2 tie with a goal in the 48th minute to give the Wheaton College (Mass.) women's soccer team a 3-2 victory over host Springfield College this evening in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Irv Schmid Sports Complex in Springfield, Mass.
The Lyons have won three in a row and improve to 7-3-2 overall and 4-1-1 in league play, while the Pride slip to 3-9 and 2-4.
Wheaton controlled possession and owned a 14-9 shot advantage to go with a 3-2 margin in corner kicks.
The Lyons received goals from sophomore forward Karina Contreras (Pawtucket, R.I.), sophomore midfielder Kate Rafferty (Westerly, R.I.) and Leiva added an assist to her game-winner. Sophomore goalie Olivia King (Simsbury, Conn.) made three saves for Wheaton.
The Lyons took the lead for good just 2:12 into the second half when Springfield played the ball back to a defender, who tried to push the ball ahead, but senior midfielder Maya Thomas (Goffstown, N.H.) intercepted the ball for Wheaton. She sent a lead cross to Leiva who had the Pride goalie one-on-one, before making a move to her left that the Springfield keeper bit on, leaving Leiva for an easy marker off her left foot inside the near left post for a 3-2 edge. The score was her league-leading 12th goal of the campaign. It proved to be the final goal of the night as both teams were kept off the board for the remaining 42-plus minutes of play.
As quickly as the Lyons scored in the second half, they were on the board early in the first session as well. Leiva broke through in a scrum just outside the box, before carrying the ball into the left slot, before slipping a cross to her right to find Contreras with a one-timer into the left corner of the net. The marker was her sixth of the year and put Wheaton on the board first.
The Pride pulled even with a score in the 10th minute of action. Junior Peyton Knott (Leicester, Mass.) received the ball on the right side, before taking it from just after midfield to the right side of the box. The forward ripped a shot that snuck inside the far left post for her second goal of the season and a 1-1 tie.
The teams exchanged goals again midway through the first half to keep the match even at 2-2.
The Lyons regained the edge in the 27th minute off a set piece when Rafferty's serve from the left corner flag went untouched through the air and eluded the leap of the Springfield netminder, settling into the far right corner of the net for her first collegiate goal.
Wheaton's one-goal advantage didn't last long before Springfield returned serve with its second goal just under three minutes later. Junior back Lauren Darrell (Wethersfield, Conn.) made the most of a free kick from just outside the box, sending a low lead cross to link up with first year forward Adyson Wiseman (Waterford, Conn.), who collected the ball on the move. Wiseman uncorked a hard shot inside the near right post for her third marker of the season and a 2-2 tie with 8:37 to play in the half.
Senior goalie Mallory Forgatch (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) stopped four shots on the night for the Pride.
The Lyons return to the pitch on Saturday, October 17 when they travel to Northampton, Mass. to play Smith College in a NEWMAC tilt at 12:00 p.m., while Springfield heads to Worcester, Mass. to take on Worcester Polytechnic Institute on the same day at 3:00 p.m.
