Friday night GW was in the midst of a hard-fought, 0-0 double-overtime tie against conference opponent Xavier in which some of its players had to play up to 110 minutes. Meanwhile, Dayton, the Colonials’ Sunday opponent, was coasting past Temple and able to rest many of their starters.
In Sunday’s game between the Colonials and Flyers, the difference in fatigue seemed to set in as Dayton remained undefeated and beat GW 4-0.
The Flyers’ offense did not take long to get going, as forward Lauren MacCormick scored off a cross from teammate Kelly Blumenschein 31 seconds into the game.
“Anytime you give up a goal in the first 30 seconds of the game, it’s tough,” head coach Tanya Vogel said. “But that’s where I give my kids credit because we regrouped, we sorted things out within our system and we played really well the rest of the first half.”
GW (3-4-3, 0-1-1 A-10) had a golden opportunity in the 39th minute on a corner kick from senior Misa Eiritz, who launched a pass toward the back post that was saved by Dayton goalkeeper Katherine Boone. The Colonials were then able to send another shot from outside of the box, though the Flyers’ defense was able to clear it away.
The second half started with both teams evenly possessing the ball until the 53rd minute, when Dayton’s Mandi Back scored off a low cross from Colleen Williams to make the score 2-0. But the game wore on and fatigue seemed to continue to plague the Colonials as they allowed two more goals – one in the 73rd minute and another on a penalty kick in the 89th minute.
“It was really just a couple breakdowns,” Vogel said. “It’s tough. As a coach, you just try to regroup and get your team sorted out.”
Despite the one-sided loss, Vogel took consolation in how her players responded to the game’s outcome.
“I think it would be very easy for a team to give up in this situation, but this team did not give up,” she said.
Three GW defenders – senior Kristen Slack, junior Emily Gower and freshman Samie Cloutier – played the full 90 minutes. Junior Jillian Morgan, a midfielder, also played the entire game and was singled out by her coach for the heart and intensity she displayed.
“Here’s a kid who, as a junior, wants really badly for this team to go to the Atlantic 10 tournament,” Vogel said. “After [Dayton] scored the fourth goal, she picked the ball up from the back of the net and ran it to the midfield because she wanted to score a goal. I think that is a statement of the mentality of many of our players.”
The Colonials will try to put this game behind them as they continue A-10 play with a pair of home games this weekend. “This team wants it really badly,” Vogel said. “Not just for 90 minutes, but for the remaining eight or nine games.”
GW will host Saint Joseph’s Friday and Temple Sunday, with Friday’s game scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
