Heading into Wednesday’s pivotal MAAC contest with Siena, the Rider women’s soccer team still had the chance to finish anywhere from second to seventh place in the conference.
Regardless of the outcome, just the fact that second place was still in the picture is a testament to the Broncs’ improvement over the past three weeks. Rider entered the match having gone 4-1-2 after an 0-7 start.
A big reason for the turn-around is that everyone is doing their jobs.
“The team is playing well and each area is performing at a high level,” coach Drayson Hounsome said after Saturday’s 4-0 win over Iona. “Attackers are scoring goals, midfielders are dominating possession, defenders are limiting the opponents to just a few opportunities and our keeper is making the big saves when necessary.”
Hounsome felt that Rider had to endure a rugged preseason schedule, and that once the MAAC season began the Broncs started playing more at their own level. But success would only come if his squad continued to improve. With that progress came victories and an increasingly positive mindset within a more balanced league.
“The MAAC is mostly an even conference with a lot of teams of similar level,” Hounsome noted. “I would say last year’s top team is not as strong as 12 months ago and last year’s bottom team is much improved.
“Being able to get success in our style of play has helped get results, which obviously leads to increased confidence and belief in the process. This belief and confidence is being seen in the performances; leading to improvements in each game.”
Rider was 4-8-2 overall and 4-2-2 after defeating Iona. A major contributor has been senior forward Michelle Iacono. The Merrick, N.Y., product leads the team in scoring with seven goals and seven assists, and has six goals and six assists in MAAC play. She has nearly equaled her career totals in one season, as Iacono had eight goals and eight assists in her first three years combined.
“She is playing with confidence and enjoying her soccer and it shows in how she is playing,” Hounsome said. “She is playing great.”
Another key has been the continued progress of freshman goalie Carmen Carbonell. The Valencia, Spain native is second in the MAAC with a 0.85 goals against average “and is the best freshman keeper in the league,” according to Hounsome.
“She is playing well,” the coach continued. “She is eager to improve and is doing so each game and training session. Like Michelle, she is playing confident. I am really happy with the rate of her development.”
Rider concludes the regular season at Manhattan Saturday, and the MAAC Tournament begins Oct. 28 in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The top five seeds get a bye while the bottom six play first-round games.
TIGERS TAMED
The Princeton Express was knocked off its tracks Saturday when Columbia defeated the host Tigers, 2-0, in a battle for first place in the Ivy League. After allowing three goals in its first 12 games, Princeton yielded two within 97 seconds early in the first half.
The Tigers (11-2) no longer control their own destiny as the Lions are 4-0 and Princeton is second at 3-1 with three Ivy games remaining. While the loss dropped PU from 11th to 17th in the National Soccer Coaches poll, the Tigers remained No. 7 in RPI, which should help for an at-large NCAA bid.
RUTGERS HANGING TOUGH
As the meat grinder that is the Big Ten schedule continues, Rutgers is doing its best to stay among the league leaders.
After losing two out of three – their first two losses of the season – Rutgers is 1-0-2 in its last three with a scoreless tie against No. 13 Penn State and a 1-0 win over No. 12 Ohio State.
The Scarlet Knights (10-2-4, 4-2-3), who moved back into the national rankings at No. 25, seem to be playing to the level of their opponents. In its last six games, Rutgers is 1-0-2 against ranked teams, and 1-2 against unranked opponents.
RU is fifth in the Big Ten with 15 points, six behind league-leading Ohio State with games remaining at Indiana Saturday and at home with Michigan Wednesday. They are important games for Rutgers to try and move up, as the B1G Tournament begins Oct. 29 with first-round games at the home fields of the top four seeds.
QUEEN OF OT
Christine Levering did it again.
Just under six minutes into the first overtime, Levering nailed a game-winning penalty kick to give The College of New Jersey a 3-2 victory at Montclair State Saturday. It marked Levering’s second golden goal, as she also scored in overtime to beat nationally ranked Johns Hopkins earlier this season.
Levering moved into a tie for second place at TCNJ with 55 career goals, and is two points shy of the Lions all-time record of 138 points. The former Robbinsville High standout has 26 career assists.
Entering Wednesday’s game at Stevens Tech, TCNJ was 13-0 overall and ranked No 2 in the United Soccer Coaches Division III rankings. The Lions were 7-0 and in first place in the New Jersey Athletic Conference, but face tough games with Kean Saturday and Rowan Wednesday to end the regular season.
WIN STREAK
Mercer put together it’s first back-to-back wins of the season by taking a 2-0 victory over College of Southern Maryland Friday. Ewing’s Nadine Abouelela and Hightstown’s Taylor Mastropasqua had the goals, while Ewing’s Kayla Kendrick and Nottingham’s Jen Macario had assists.
MCCC followed with a tie against CCBC-Catonsville and a loss to Monroe of the Bronx to finish the season 4-10-1 and 0-5 in Region XIX play.
Follow Rich Fisher on twitter @fish4scores
