SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. – Senior forward Cassidy Robinson netted the game winner in the 74th minute to lift the Mount Holyoke College soccer team to a 2-1 victory over Wellesley College in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Saturday. With the win – the first for the Lyons over the Blue since 2004 – MHC improves to 6-7 and 2-3 in conference play. The Blue are now 7-5-2 overall and 1-3-0 in the NEWMAC.
Tied 1-1 late in the contest, Robinson (Lebanon, N.H./Lebanon) found herself in a perfect position to give the Lyons the lead. Senior forward Kara Singleton (Parsonsfield, Maine/Sacopee Valley) sent the ball into the middle of the box, sailing just past the goalie's reach. Robinson flew in on the right side, battling with a Wellesley defender at the post, as the ball banked off her foot an in for the go-ahead tally.
Mount Holyoke's defense continued to hold strong over the final minutes of the game, including a four-save effort from Lyons keeper Zoe Marshall (Mississauga, Ont./Cawthra Park Secondary School).
It was the homestanding Lyons who opened the game's scoring early and quickly, taking a 1-0 lead just 1:18 into the contest. Off a corner from Singleton, the ball careened into the middle and off the head of a Wellesley defender. As it dropped, senior captain Hannah Yee (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Regional) was able to one-touch it into the right corner for the tally.
Wellesley made quick work of taking the momentum in the half, but Marshall stood strong with four first half saves.
There were several chances for the Blue in the first 45, one coming with nearly 11 minutes left in the frame as first year Melise Knowles (Diablo, Calif./The Athenian School) battled in the goal box with an MHC defender. She was able to get her foot on an incoming cross, but her redirect was quickly caught by Marshall.
Wellesley finally broke onto the scoreboard in the 68th minute as junior Darlene Dang scored unassisted on a goal that banked into the left corner past the reach of Marshall.
For the game, Marshall finished with eight stops to move to 5-2 on the season. Wellesley saw senior Claire Cerda (Coral Gables, Fla./Ransom Everglades) did not make any saves in the opening half, while junior Kat Goldsmith (Armonk, N.Y./Greenwich Academy) shouldered the loss and had one save in the second half.
Wellesley held a 16-5 edge in shots and a slight 5-2 edge in corner kicks for the game.
Both teams return to action on Tuesday as Mount Holyoke travels to Coast Guard (7pm) and Wellesley is at MIT (4pm).
