SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. (Oct. 16, 2012) – Powered by a goal in each half, the Clark University women's soccer team held off Mount Holyoke College, 2-1, in NEWMAC action on Tuesday evening. With the victory, which saw junior Janelle Pasternack record two assists, the Cougars move to 7-7-1 overall and 4-3-0 in conference play. The Lyons slip to 2-10-2 on the season and 1-6-0 in the NEWMAC.
Holding a 1-0 lead after the first half of action, the Cougars made it a two-goal advantage at 58:27 when senior Hannah Moriarty (Millbury, Mass./Millbury) sent a perfectly placed header into the net off a corner kick by Pasternack (North Brookfield, Mass./Quabbin Regional).
Mount Holyoke continued to battle and the pressure finally paid off at 70:28 as senior Kiana Lussier (South Hadley, Mass./South Hadley) one-timed a loose ball into the open net. Sophomore Hannah Yee (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Regional) earned the primary assist after her bullet shot at keeper Gabby Paolini (North Potomac, Md./Quince Orchard) was stopped, but came right out to Lussier on the right side.
Both teams had their chances over the final stages of the second half, including a number of multiple stops for the Cougars. Lynch had one of the best attempts to make it a two-goal game for the visitors at 83:30 after she fired a shot in the MHC netminder Mackenzie Randall (Harwinton, Conn./Forman), who made a diving save and pushed it out off her fingertips.
The Lyons kept battling to the end and nearly got the equalizer with just over a minute left after junior Katie Dupuis (Holyoke, Mass./Williston Northampton School) fired a shot in off a free kick, but Paolini was up to the task.
Clark came out firing right from the start and struck first on the scoreboard as junior Emma Lynch (Pawtucket, R.I./Saint Raphael) took a feed from Pasternack at 23:42. The goal, which began off a corner by sophomore Charlotte Mays (Melrose, Mass./Melrose), saw the ball drop into traffic in front of the goal, where Pasternack settled for the feed to Lynch.
For the game, Clark held a 15-11 edge in shots, while also leading in corner kicks by an 8-3 margin. In goal, Paolini earned the victory with seven stops. Randall shouldered the loss and made 10 saves on the night.
The Lyons are back on the field on Saturday at NEWMAC-rival, Springfield for a 2:30pm game. The Cougars also continue league-play on Saturday at Smith in a 1pm contest.
Photo courtesy of Richard Orr Sports Photography.
