The Lady Jays women’s soccer team concluded a dramatic week that included a 5-0 romp at home against McDaniel and a thrilling comeback win, featuring two goals in the final 20 minutes, to defeat Gettysburg 2-1.
In the first match on Oct. 24th against McDaniel, the Lady Jays knew they had to win to set up a matchup with Gettysburg to determine the number one seed and host of the Centennial Conference tournament.
Hopkins come out firing on all cylinders, dominating the Green Terror from start to finish. Sophomore Sydney Teng opened the scoring for the Jays on a slick pass from fellow Sophomore Hannah Kronick. However, this would only be the beginning for Kronick, who would score her record tying 20th goal of the season in the the 63rd minute on a beautifully placed shot off a free kick. Later in the second half, Kronick would break the single season record for goals by notching her 21st goal of the year as she used her body to turn on a McDaniel defender and then finessed the ball past goalkeeper Jan Wooley.
Kronick became just the third player in Hopkins history to notch 40 career goals. She has totaled 95 points through only 38 career matches.
The Jays would travel to Gettysburg, PA on Saturday, closing out their regular season schedule in dramatic, clinching fashion.
Sophomore Emily Nagourney chose to score her first career goal when it mattered most. With nine minutes left in a tie game, and the number one seed in the playoff tournament up for grabs, Nagourney soared high in the air and headed home the game winning goal.
“The comeback was huge for us,” Kronick said, “I think it showed our character. We haven’t had any games this year where we have actually come back from being down. We never gave up and mounted a two goal comeback which was great for us.”
The goal capped off a two-goal rally in the waning moments of the game to give Hopkins a final regular season record of 14-3-1 and a conference record of 9-1.
Gettysburg held a 1-0 lead going into halftime despite the fact that the Lady Jays had maintained the majority of the possession and out-shot the Bullets 8-2 in the first half alone. The Bullets scored in the 11th minute of the game after Tobi Gross scored her first goal of the season on a blast that got past goalkeeper Meredith Maguire.
After continuing to pressure in the second half, the Jays finally broke through in the 71st minute when Kelly Baker knocked home a loose ball, evening the score at one apiece. After Hopkins took the lead on Nagourney’s header, Tobi Goss was able to get two shots on goal in the final moments but to no avail as the Jays fought off the striker and held on for the victory.
The win ensured Hopkins as the host of the conference tournament. “Clinching the number one seed and hosting is exactly what we wanted,” Kronick said, “we have worked so hard this year despite the adversity we have faced so next weekend I think we’re ready to show how hard we have worked.” The Jays will face the winner of the Swarthmore vs. Muhlenberg game in the conference semi-finals on Saturday, Nov. 3, at Homewood field.
Incredibly, Hopkins is searching for its eighth consecutive conference title, but by no means are they banking on a win. “Although we have built a reputation for ourselves in the conference,” Kronick said, “We have to work for it every year. We have worked so hard this year and are hoping to earn that conference title next weekend.”
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