The Georgetown University women’s soccer team beat the Sacred Heart University Pioneers in a comfortable 3-0 display Nov. 14 at Shaw Field in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
The win sends the No. 2 seeded Hoyas (16-3-2, 10-0 Big East) to the second round of the tournament, where they will face off against the No. 7 seeded West Virginia University Mountaineers Thursday, Nov. 20, at Shaw Field. A brace by senior forward Natalie Means and a penalty goal from senior midfielder Shay Montogemery sealed Georgetown’s victory over Sacred Heart University (11-9-2, 7-5 MAAC) as the Hoyas outshot the Pioneers 22-1.
The game began with a slow start — both teams were sloppy with their passes, but Georgetown had the line share of possession. The Hoyas’ first big chance came in the 6th minute when redshirt senior midfielder Mary Cochran found herself with space outside the penalty box and fired a solid shot, which was saved by the Pioneers’ keeper Kyran Thievon.
The Hoyas kept pushing forward; in the 15th minute, Means sent in a low cross to senior forward Henley Tippins, but Thievon got to the ball just before Tippins.
The Hoyas made their early dominance count two minutes later when Tippins secured control of the ball in the penalty box and looped it over the keeper for Means to head home in front of the goal. The Hoyas deservedly went up 1-0.
Means nearly increased the Hoyas’ lead to 2 in the 20th minute when she swiveled past a defender and struck a half volley, which sailed just over the bar.
A nail-biter moment came in the 22nd minute when Sacred Heart forward Riley Pettigrew got on the end of a good pass, but a heavy touch saw the ball land right in Georgetown senior keeper Cara Martin’s hands.
Video assistant referee (VAR) was called into action in the 26th minute when sophomore midfielder Caroline Spengler was taken to the ground in the penalty box by a Pioneer. After a lengthy stoppage, the referee awarded the Hoyas a penalty; Montgomery smashed the ball into the bottom left corner to make the score 2-0 for the Hoyas.
After Georgetown’s second goal, the game mellowed out a bit for the rest of the first half, with neither team scoring.
Coming out for the second half, the Hoyas showed no mercy. The team created chance after chance as the Pioneers struggled to find their way out of their penalty box.
Within the first few seconds of the second half, sophomore forward Jocelyn Lohmeyer found herself free in the 6 yard box but fired her shot straight down the middle into the keeper’s hands. A minute later, Lohmeyer walked off the field with what looked like a knee injury after colliding with a Pioneer defender — a big loss for the Hoyas.
Even without Lohmeyer, Georgetown didn’t stop pushing as Cochran beat the same defender twice before flicking the ball with her heel to Montogomery. Montgomery took one step and fired the ball off the crossbar — at this point, the Hoyas were running in circles around Sacred Heart’s defense.
Georgetown found another big chance in the 51st minute as Means fired a low shot that was pushed out to Tippins. Tippins couldn’t get a solid amount of contact on the ball as it dribbled wide of the post.
Sacred Heart’s defense misjudged the ball’s flight in the 54th minute, allowing first-year forward Aliza Mannon through on goal, but the keeper saved her low-driven shot.
Yet another chance fell to Means’ feet two minutes later when she dribbled past two defenders before hitting a shot over the crossbar.
The Hoyas asserted their final bout of dominance in the 62nd minute when Tippins was tripped by the keeper, and VAR confirmed the penalty. Means’ shot was too powerful for the keeper, and the Hoyas extended their lead to 3-0.
In the 70th minute, the Pioneers were awarded a penalty, their first big chance of the game. Midfielder Martyna Krzysztopik stepped up, but her penalty was brilliantly saved by Martin.
Georgetown held on to their 3-0 lead until the final whistle was blown, advancing the expectant Hoyas to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
With the Hoyas’ victory, Georgetown Head Coach David Nolan celebrated his 300th win with the team, and he said he was proud of the result.
“I thought the kids played really well,” Nolan told The Hoya. “These games are always a nervy kind of occasion because it’s win and move on, lose and you’re done. We’re really excited to advance and we played really well against a team that presented us with some challenges.”
With this win under their belt, the No. 2 Hoyas will look for a successful result Nov. 20 in the second round of the NCAA tournament against the No. 7 seeded West Virginia. Georgetown bowed out in the first round of the tournament in a loss to the University of Iowa last year, making this year’s success even more meaningful. Georgetown will be looking to put last season’s woes behind them and go all the way this year.
