Erin Coppedge scored the lone goal in the GW women’s soccer team’s 1-0 conference win at Fordham Sunday afternoon, enabling the Colonials to split their weekend following Friday’s loss at La Salle.
Coppedge scored her fourth goal of the season at the 19-minute mark, a header into the bottom right corner of the goal off a Caite Terranova indirect kick. That goal coupled with GW goalkeeper Christine O’Malley’s five saves, proved too much for the Rams (8-1) who remain winless in eight A-10 games.
The Rams would outshoot the Colonials 10-4 in the match with Fordham’s Elena Daragjati and Emily Parella combining for five shots on O’Malley.
The Colonials improved their record to 6-8 overall and 3-4 in the conference. It was an important victory for the Colonials who remain in the hunt for the A-10 Championship’s final qualifying spot. GW, currently in sixth place, could inch closer with a win over fifth-ranked Rhode Island on Friday.
Except for a game against Richmond earlier this season, GW has not faired well against better teams in the A-10. On Friday, GW lost to fourth-place La Salle. The Colonials had trouble containing Explorers Krista Lee, whose four assists in the Explorers 4-1 win, set a school record.
The Colonials offense made their only dent on La Salle goalkeeper Kaitlin Glass early in the game. Meggan Eckert scored an unassisted goal at the 7:25 mark. It was Eckert’s second goal of the season. Beyond that, the Colonials found themselves struggling to mount any offense. Sophomore Kim Warner and freshman Meggan Cracker combined for five shots on Glass.
The Colonials surrendered their lead early when La Salle’s Amy Schneider scored one of her two goals on the day at the 35-minute mark. She tied the game off a crossing pass from Lee, which would mark the start of a La Salle dominated game. The Explorers took seven shots on goal in both halves, as well as took six corner kicks.
Nine minutes into the second half, La Salle extended its lead when Schneider beat GW goalkeeper Christine O’Malley. Five minutes later, Schneider found teammate Colleen Farrell, who blasted a shot past GW keeper O’Malley, to make it 3-1 lead. The Explorers added their fourth goal at the 69:08 mark as Lee notched her fourth assist of the match on a goal by Laura Murray.
The Colonials defense allowed La Salle ten shots on goal. O’Malley made four saves on the day, and freshman Julia Guthrie, who played 15 minutes, made one save.
