RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The Sarah Lawrence women's soccer team battled against the Dolphins of Mount Saint Vincent on Wednesday night, eventually falling to the top-seeded hosts in penalty kicks after both teams were held scoreless through regulation and two overtime periods. The Gryphons wrapped up their 2024 campaign with a record of 12-7-2 overall and an 8-2-1 mark in conference play, including a regular-season victory over the Dolphins that remains UMSV's only conference loss to date in 2024.
Notable Performers
How it Happened
The Gryphons showed that they were the better team throughout the first 45 minutes despite the stalemate. A 10th-minute shot on goal by Colvin was the first of the day for the Gryphons, who outshot the hosts 11-5 in the first half of play. The team's second shot on goal came from the left foot of all-conference forward
Katey Beaver, who forced the Dolphins' keeper to make a diving save to keep the Gryphons off the board. Despite only putting two of the 11 shots on goal, the Gryphons constantly pressured the UMSV defense while the defensive trio mentioned above kept the Dolphins from threatening offensively for the majority of the half.
The second half would see UMSV come out stronger offensively, controlling the possession and forcing SLC's defenders to work overtime. Despite the improved offensive effort, it was still the Gryphons that created pressure early. Shots from Colvin and
Grace Carter forced the UMSV keeper to make a pair of saves early in the half and a quality look by Balbin in the 66th minute missed high by inches as the score remained 0-0. Vaca remained active, keeping the Dolphins off the board as well. Balbin would get another look in the 75th minute and would miss high once again, keeping the game knotted up at 0-0. Both teams would fail to seriously threaten to score for the remainder of the game, until a shot by UMSV's Ima Kellerman hit the crossbar with 28 seconds remaining on a look from the top of the box. The period would end and the teams would head into the first overtime period.
The Gryphons struggled offensively in the first overtime period, failing to register a shot while the Dolphins totaled five, putting two on goal. The highlights of the period were a pair of saves by Vaca, first redirecting a shot from Jasmine Hewitt that hit the crossbar before making the best save of the year on an Alicia Rodriguez shot, saving it with her foot to keep the Dolphins from winning the game. UMSV put two more shots up in the final two minutes but neither found its way towards Vaca and the teams returned to their benches to prepare for a second overtime period. The second overtime period saw just one shot put up by either team, another look for Balbin, this time from long range before UMSV's keeper made the save.
In the penalty kick shootout, Mount Saint Vincent would convert on their first three opportunities, while conversions by
Hannah Chaffin and
Katey Beaver gave the Gryphons their two points to bring the score to 3-2. UMSV keeper Javiera Sanchez would take her turn at the line with a chance to send the Dolphins to the championships and would convert, giving the reigning Skyline champions another shot at the title. The Dolphins will host Farmingdale State on Saturday at noon with the conference championship on the line.
Looking Ahead
The Gryphons wrapped up their 2024 campaign with impressive marks of 12-7-2 overall and 8-2-1 in conference play. They will return key contributors Balbin, Beaver, Chaffin, Duckrey, Moor, Perez, Vaca and others as they look to continue the program's success in 2025.
