The No. 2 seed Georgetown women’s soccer team (16-3-3, 10-0 BIG EAST) left the pitch on Thursday evening with a Round of 32 victory over No. 7 seed West Virginia University (14-3-4, 8-0-3 BIG 12). The Hoyas came out on top after a consistent back-and-forth through 110 minutes of regular and overtime play, ending in a 1-1 draw, followed by a 4-3 penalty shootout to cap off the night.
Despite the pressing nature of Thursday’s fixture — a win being necessary for either team to advance in the NCAA Playoff bracket — the Hoyas failed to find meaningful connections early on. West Virginia quickly capitalized on multiple half clearances made by the Georgetown defense and tapped the ball into the back of the net after just three minutes.
Unwilling to allow the Mountaineers’ one-goal lead to dictate their half, the Hoyas fought back instantly — heavily pressuring their defense and thus generating a series of scoring opportunities. Many of these attacks were led by creative decisions from the dynamic forwards graduate student Maja Lardner and senior Natalie Means. The physicality between the teams also grew as energy was high among both squads, with seven total fouls committed across the entire first half.
It took until the 23rd minute for the Hoyas to finally craft a response, one built up by Lardner, once more, and redshirt senior midfielder Mary Cochran. Sophomore midfielder Lizzie Heller, however, was ultimately the force needed to champion an outstretched West Virginia keeper and set the Hoyas even with the Mountaineers. While some promising attacks for both teams emerged as time progressed, the back end of the first half was dominated by action in the midfield, leaving the goalies relatively uninvolved.
In the 55th minute, Hoya senior goalkeeper Cara Martin was forced to make her first of multiple split-second decisions to keep the Mountaineer offense at bay. Despite successfully halting West Virginia senior forward Taylor White’s attack, Martin’s collision with the ball outside of the box was flagged as a possible handball. Such a mistake could have seen her sent off of the pitch with a red card, but center referee Meghan Mullen ultimately concluded that she made no significant contact with her hands. Mullen notably abstained from calling many possible fouls after this critical play, which left both benches and many fans in the stands aggravated as the two teams battled out the remainder of regular time. The final 20 minutes of overtime play saw much of the same action as the previous 90. Counter attacks. Corner kicks. Breaks through defensive lines. Head Coach Dave Nolan even picked up a yellow card after expressing discontent towards Mullen. Yet, as the clock wound down to zero, neither the Hoyas nor the Mountaineers managed to convert.
Thus, with 1-1 still illuminating the score board, the Hoyas and the Mountaineers faced off in penalty kicks. Georgetown senior midfielder Shay Montgomery calmly set the tone for the Hoyas netting the first strike. The Mountaineers responded with their own. Both teams then scored on kicks number two and four, but missed their third. Means added a fifth to Georgetown’s score, which meant West Virginia needed to match it. In a suspenseful moment, coaches and fans holding their breaths alike, the final Mountaineer struck the ball, hit the crossbar, and the Hoyas advanced to NCAA Sweet 16.
The seemingly endless night certainly took its toll on Hoya players, both physically and mentally, so it will be exciting to see how they will have adapted and recovered in their next match. Georgetown women’s soccer will face No. 3 seed Florida State (12-2-4, 6-2-2 ACC) on Sunday at 12:00 PM at home on Shaw Field.
