The Georgetown women’s soccer team (4-1-0, Big East), knew coming into the season that the month of September would be quite busy for them. In the first month of classes on the Hilltop, the Hoyas face three ranked opponents and eventually start Big East play, when they kick off against Providence (3-2-1, Big East) on September 25.
In their first week of September, the Hoyas have excelled in all facets of the game, and secured one of their biggest wins in program history, shocking #12 Rutgers (3-1-1, Big Ten) in Piscataway, NJ. The win came in overtime, when junior midfielder Rachel Corboz scored on a brilliant shot from outside the box just over thirty seconds into the period.
The Scarlet Knights took an early lead in the game, with their only goal coming in the third minute from senior forward Madison Tiernan. The Hoyas answered quickly when Corboz scored on a penalty kick in the fifteenth minute. After this, the two teams would remain tied through the end of regulation time.
Both teams attempted to strike in the second half, with Rutgers having a strong performance in the beginning of the half, and Georgetown countering towards the end. For the Hoyas, Corboz, graduate student defender Corey Delaney, and junior defender Taylor Pak all had shots on goal in the final twenty minutes of the half. This momentum would carry through to overtime, culminating in Corboz’s finish.
“It was a fantastic result…” Coach Dave Nolan said of the road win, “When it gets to those types of games and they’re that tight, it usually comes down to someone making a bad mistake or someone making a really big play. Rachel was the best player on the field the whole night.”
The Hoyas returned to the Hilltop triumphant, and two days later played an exhibition game against Papua New Guinea’s U-20 team. The Hoyas won 6-0, with graduate student forward Crystal Thomas scoring four goals. The match served as a way to give most of the team’s regular starters a rest, and get in-game experience for the team’s rookies and bench players.
The Hoyas’ next opponent is George Mason (4-2-0, Patriot League), whom they will face in a 7:30 pm matchup at George Mason Stadium this Thursday, September 8. The game was originally scheduled to be a home match for the Hoyas, with a 4:00 pm start time, but was pushed back due to an excessive heat warning that afternoon. Since Shaw Field cannot host night games, the game had to be moved to Fairfax, Virginia.
The switch will likely benefit the Patriots, who are 4-1-0 at home this season, and have outscored opponents 11-6 on their own turf. Sophomore forward Nia Elbeck leads the Patriots in scoring with 2 goals and 3 assists so far in the season. She is followed by Junior midfielder Abby Downey, who has 2 goals and 1 assist. Senior goalkeeper Kirsten Glad leads the team with 26 assists.
The Patriots are coached by Todd Bramble, who is in his second year with the team. “He’ll have them very well prepared,” Hoya coach Nolan said of George Mason’s Bramble, “They’re going to be very physical and athletic, so that’s not going to be an easy game.”
No game is ever easy, but for the Hoyas, Thursday’s matchup will be another one in which they look to set the tone for their season.
