Coming on the heels of a dominant winning streak, the Hopkins women’s soccer team traveled to Collegeville, Pa. to face off against Ursinus this past Saturday in a Centennial Conference showdown.
The Lady Jays were in control throughout the match, shutting out the Bears by a final score of 4-0. Four different Blue Jays scored in the shutout, with the first goal coming just 90 seconds into the match. Senior Hannah Kronick passed the ball cross field to sophomore Ana Bengoechea, who knocked it into the left-hand side of the goal, bringing the score to 1-0.
At the 21-minute mark, Bengoechea passed to senior teammate Alyssa Conti, setting her up for the goal, bringing the score to 2-0. The Lady Jays were not able to score again as the half came to a close.
As the second half began, Kronick would secure her second assist of the game on a goal from senior Sydney Teng to extend the lead to three.
Entering the 84th minute, freshman Sophie Murphy scored the final goal of the match, bringing the total to 4-0, putting the icing on the cake and sealing the fate for Ursinus. Sophomore goaltender Clara Aranguren tallied one save in the match, earning her fifth victory of the season.
According to sophomore Adrienne Johnson, the offensive intensity was a necessary part of the team’s game plan.
"We are definitely not a team that will hold back and wait for the other team," Johnson said. "We go for it 100 percent of the time. This is the style of play that has been in place since last season. We don’t hold back and play a more defensive-minded game, even against teams that might not match up as well with us.”
The Lady Jays outshot the Bears 19-4 throughout regulation. The Blue Jays maintained position throughout the game, without the threat of a comeback from the Bears.
“Having that kind of freedom in the game was nice,” Johnson said. “It allowed us to try out different combinations and be creative on the field.”
The Lady Jays experimented with different rotations on the field in preparation for their upcoming game against Haverford. Haverford is one of the top-ranked teams in the conference and thus poses a threat to the Lady Jays’ playoff hopes.
“They always give us a good game,” Johnson said. “However, our coaches have been pushing us in practice more, having us scrimmage and getting us comfortable with high pressure, game-like scenarios. We are definitely prepared and ready for the game.”
The last five games of the regular season are all against conference opponents. Johnson believes that each of those games should be treated like a playoff matchup.
“We are playing each game as if it were the Centennial Conference tournament," Johnson said. "Because each team is a conference opponent, we cannot hold anything back. We are definitely looking to win the tournament and we are also looking ahead to the NCAA tournament. We know that in order to rank well in the national poll, we need to keep winning, and that is what we plan to do. So for now, we just need to focus on what is in front of us.”
The Lady Jays are currently 5-0 in the Centennial Conference and 11-2 overall on the season, including their current nine-game winning streak. Johnson offered insight into the team’s strategy as the tournament approaches.
“The main thing that we have switched up from last year that will put us over the top in the tournament is our formation," Johnson said. "We changed our formation from last year, and it definitely took some time to get used to. Now that we are at the end of the season, we are much more comfortable with the formation and it can be seen through our wins on the field. We are able to effectively utilize space and take advantage of the space that opposing teams will give us.”
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