ANNAPOLIS, Md. – A promising matchup between Navy and Bucknell, two teams separated by just one point in the Patriot League standings, had all types of twists and turns as part of a one-goal contest on Friday night. At the end of 90 minutes of action, the Mids (11-4-2, 4-1-1 PL) came out on top of the Bison (6-6-3, 3-1-2 PL) by a score of 1-0 on the strength of a
Chiara Cosenza (Sr., Westfield, N.J.) penalty kick in the 83rd minute.
The initial kickoff at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility was moved up an hour in advance of potential inclement weather as both squads hoped to complete play before a substantial band of rain and high winds was set to enter the Annapolis region. Helpful for the first half, which was played in warm, summer-like conditions, that inclement weather eventually reared its ugly head with torrential downpours and wind gusts whipping over 30 miles per hour and played a significant role in the second half.
Junior goalkeeper
Natasha Stramrood (Cypress, Texas) was strong in goal as she posted her second consecutive shutout with five saves.
"That was probably a fun game for fans to watch, it had a little bit of everything," remarked head coach
Carin Gabarra. "We started with a beautiful sunny day and ended up with some torrential rain in the middle, but I'm really proud of our patience and our ability to stick to our game plan.
"I thought we had a very good first half. We possessed well, we moved well, got numbers forward. We just didn't have what we wanted in the final third and the product in the box, but we stayed to our game plan. We played the same way second half. We were patient until we got that chance for the PK. I'm proud of today's result."
While the field was fast and dry in the first half, the action bounced from end to end up and down the pitch as both teams were active out of the gate with Navy registering three shots over the opening 10:25 and Bucknell tallying back-to-back attempts in the 12th minute.
After that initial feeling out period, more defensive-minded and physical play took control of the middle portion of the first half with only one total shot taken over the next 20 minutes. In the 33rd minute, Stramrood's number was called as Ingrid Murphy took aim for the back of the net following a corner kick opportunity. A little over three minutes later, Stramrood was up to the task again with another save, her third of the half.
Navy had the final high percentage look at goal in the opening stanza as
Stella Jones (Fr., Jacksonville, Fla.) tested Bucknell's Sarah McFarland with a shot on goal in the waning seconds of the half.
Scoreless coming out of the locker rooms after the halftime intermission, the evenly-matched play that marked the first half went out the window as Mother Nature took control within minutes of the teams re-taking the field. After the squads exchanged shots in the 49th and 50th minutes, the Bison were held to just two more shots for the final 40 minutes of play as they were dealing with a smothering defensive effort by the Mids and a substantial wind blowing into their attack. Likewise, Navy used this to its advantage with booming punts and a willingness to take shots from slightly further out with the wind behind them and a slick goal box.
Ande Swan (Jr., Sugar Land, Texas) notched the Mids' second shot on goal of the half with a deep blast from outside the 18 in the 55th minute before
Katia Katsari-Hoefer (So., Herndon, Va.) recorded the host's most dangerous look as her shot zipped past McFarland, but unfortunately square into the cross bar in the 77th minute. 70 seconds later, Jones tallied her second shot on goal of the game as her seemingly innocent cross, kept curling and forced McFarland to leap up and make a save.
With the game still scoreless and less than 10 minutes remaining,
Helen Bonner (So., McLean, Va.) took aim with a shot on a goal in the 82nd minute before Dani Howard switched the field and had a rebuttal for Bucknell 33 seconds later.
As the rain slowed and wind settled the scoreboard finally saw action at 82:12 when Cosenza was fouled in the box and was awarded a penalty kick. The senior sharpshooter had no qualms about taking the PK and calmly deposited it into the corner of the goal to give Navy the eventual game-winning score as neither team recorded a shot over the remaining 7:48 of play.
For the game, Navy out-shot Bucknell, 18-8 with a 7-5 edge in shots on goal. The Mids also held a slight advantage in corner kicks, 6-4.
Stramrood completed her fourth solo shutout of the season and the team's eighth overall with five saves. She's currently on a run of 244:15 straight minutes of scoreless action in goal.
"We had a lot of players rotate in that played very well today," commented Gabarra. "We've been tough defensively. We're playing organized, staying connected, and we're not letting players and teams in behind us. I'm proud of the effort today.
"Any win in the conference is great, so now we move onto the next one."
Navy will now turn its attention to a home tilt versus American next Friday, October 23. Kickoff between the Mids and Eagles is set for 7 p.m. at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility.
