When AU plays Holy Cross in any sport one thing is for sure: you will always get both teams' best effort, no matter what the records. The Holy Cross Crusaders played the AU Women's Soccer team (3-3-1) strong but succumbed to the continuous Eagle pressure early into the second half, losing the game 4-1.
AU controlled much of the first half play, but 29:31 into the game the Crusaders worked the ball deep into AU's end and capitalized on a great finish by Sarah Comeaux for the first goal of the game.
The play seemed to shock the Eagles for a few minutes. Led by the strong play of sophomores Marcela Ricupero and Simone Konig, however, AU answered quickly.
Right as the half came to a close there was a scary moment that silenced the crowd.
As the Eagles advanced the ball junior mid-fielder Sarah Boltz dribbled toward the middle of the penalty area and tried to get a shot off as the Crusader defenders collapsed around her. She was knocked to the ground and lay motionless on the field for a few minutes at the 42:03 mark.
"It's a possible broken leg. She is at the hospital getting X-rays right now," said Head Coach Michael Brady.
Substitute freshman Jana Lee didn't waste any time before she got herself onto the score sheet with her first two career college goals. Lee scored 18 seconds later on a cutback that she placed into the lower right corner of the goal.
Lee struck again just over 10 minutes into the second half when she received a pass from senior Anabel Jimenez, who controlled a pass from junior Amy Muller.
"The energy on the field was amazing. I came out onto the field with fresh legs and I just wanted to put them to use," Lee said. "It felt great to put the ball into the back of the net and help the team win."
Fellow freshman Kristie Fontana added a third goal for the Eagles at the 75:20 mark. She ran onto the ball from 22 yards out and blasted a left-foot shot that sliced through the air and dipped right under the crossbar. The Eagles out shot the Crusaders 30-9 on the day.
"We had a lot of mental breakdowns in the second half and I didn't think we played all that well," said Holy Cross's Mary Curtis. "We had nine people behind the ball but they still scored. I think we showed in the first half we could absolutely play with them, but the second half they just took it to us."
The Eagles will travel to Colgate Saturday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m., then host Youngstown College on Wednesday, Oct. 8 at 2 p.m.
