A trip to sunny Florida this weekend was no vacation for the Georgetown women’s soccer team, which split two games, defeating Florida International, 2-1, but losing the more important matchup to Miami, 5-1.

While the Hoyas displayed quality play on Friday against the Golden Panthers, they were flat throughout their matchup against the Hurricanes. Their usually dependable offense sputtered against a Miami defense, which, before meeting Georgetown, was giving up 1.94 goals per game, third worst in the Big East. Unfortunately, the inconsistent Hoya defense came into the game no better, giving up a league-worst 2.37 goals per game.

“On Sunday, we played very flat and we just didn’t show up to play,” Head Coach Diane Drake said. “The game showed our youth and our immaturity as players.”

Miami shot out of the gates, quickly scoring three goals in the first 25 minutes of the game. The Hurricanes’ Alison Ford got the scoring started 2:28 into the game, and was followed by goals from Vonda Mathews at the 13:04 mark and Alexis MacKenzie at 22:12. The Hoyas quieted the storm momentarily as freshman midfielder Jen Choiniere knocked in her seventh goal of the season on a free kick from fellow freshman middie Alyssa Conlow.

Choiniere’s performance in both games, which also included the game-winning goal against Florida International, provided the highlight of the weekend for Georgetown.

With the score 3-1 at halftime, the Hoyas failed to capitalize on Choiniere’s goal, giving up another two goals in the second half within a two-minute span. Ford chipped in her second goal at 55:10 minutes into the game and Matthews closed out the scoring at the 57:18 mark.

The uncomfortably hot Miami conditions took a toll on the team as Drake was compelled to play 26 players to try to keep everyone fresh.

“We struggled with the heat, but it was frustrating to underachieve,” Drake said.

The Hoyas looked totally different on Friday, as the team showcased its talent to overcome both a strong Golden Panthers squad, and a poor officiating crew. Junior midfielder Kelly Piatenesi notched her first career goal 17:05 into the game to get Georgetown on the board first. An early second half goal from the Panthers knotted the game at one. But Choiniere continued her impressive rookie season, scoring the game winner on a corner kick from junior defender Alyson Smith.

“We displayed very creative ways of attack,” Drake said. “We felt the officiating was poor, but we found a way to win.”

Georgetown must now travel to division rival West Virginia on Wednesday to decide its fate. A win or a tie will qualify them for the postseason Big East tournament; a loss will send them home.

The Hoyas are the underdog in this matchup, but they do have a few things on their side.

“Everyone’s focused after a loss and we play very well at night games on the road,” Drake said.

The keys to the Hoyas’ gameplan will be good defense along with discipline when they face off against an athletic Mountaineer team, which they eliminated in last year’s tournament.

If Georgetown defeats West Virginia, it will play Boston College. A tie will match them up against a much tougher opponent in nationally-ranked Connecticut, but the Hoyas must make the tournament first.