The Boston University women’s soccer team won its second match in a row in a 2-1 decision against Providence College Thursday night.
BU (2-4-2) controlled most of the match and successively restricted Providence’s strong attacking players.
The Friars (6-3) have two offensive powerhouses in forwards Rachel Ugolik and Catherine Zimmerman. The two had difficulty making it past the persistent Terrier defense all night, which was the deciding factor of the game.
BU coach Nancy Feldman said she was impressed by how well her team defended against the Friars.
“That’s a team defense because you limit their touches and good attacking players used to touching the ball and having opportunities, they feel like they’re out of their flow,” Feldman said. “That’s our philosophy. One, keep the ball so the other team doesn’t have it, so therefore, they can’t give it to their attacking personalities.
“Two,” she continued, “when we’re defending, defend as much as we can in their half of the field to put them under pressure and not let their attacking personalities get touches. When we do it well, it works to perfection. We didn’t shut them down, but we managed them and that is a key for us as a program, as a team.”
BU maintained control in the beginning of the match, keeping play in the attacking end for the majority of the first five minutes. When the Friars gained possession, the Terriers enforced their dominance, pushing the Friars to the outside.
BU had two corner kicks in the 11th minute. Seven more would follow before the end of the match. The Terriers’ defense also kept Providence from recording a shot until the 16th minute.
“We started the game well and had charge of it for most of the first half,” Feldman said. “We also had nine corner kicks in the game. We used what they were giving us, which was wide play.”
Providence gained momentum, and almost scored on a free kick following a foul by Terrier freshman midfielder Julianna Chen. However, BU bounced back just minutes later.
Forward McKenna Doyle put the Terriers on the board first in the 22nd minute of the match with a graceful kick that rolled past Providence goalkeeper Kristyn Shea. The freshman now leads the team with two goals.
Providence threatened to answer, gaining access to the Terriers’ defending third after outsmarting sophomore defender Alivya Wimmer near midfield. However, BU’s defense stayed true, and cleared the ball.
Senior goalkeeper Alyssa Parisi saw more action in the opening minutes of the second half than she did in the entire first half. The Friars fought to get on the board, nearly scoring in the 48th minute, but Parisi put her body in front of the ball.
Chen also proved to be a key player in BU’s success. She moved the ball though the middle zone with ease, helping the Terriers keep possession on multiple occasions.
“She’s solid,” Feldman said of Chen. “She’s a little fatigued right now. She didn’t have her best legs tonight, but she is strong, steady and cerebral. She gave up the ball a little bit more than normal, and that’s fatigue. But she holds her space. She’s tough. She plays more maturely than her years. She’s a freshman [and] she doesn’t play like a freshman.”
In the 60th minute, senior Lauren Elia finally broke through the Terrier defense and sent a shot bending into the top left corner of the net, out of Parisi’s reach.
The Terriers sought to reestablish their lead shortly thereafter. Freshman midfielder Dorrie Varley-Barrett, who received her first collegiate start, brought the ball up along the outside and passed it in front of the net, but Providence cleared after a bad touch by Chen.
BU controlled the pace once again and in the 72nd minute the ball bounced off senior midfielder Clare Pleuler’s head and into the net, but it was ruled an own goal. Regardless, the Terriers held a 2-1 lead with less than twenty minutes of play remaining.
After a short break off the field, Ugolik returned in the 81st minute, eager to net the equalizer. The junior leads the Friars in goals with four on the season.
BU did not ease up. The Terriers kept putting up shots, bringing their total to seven on the night. In the 84th minute, the Terriers had one of the strongest possessions of the game. They completed a long series of passes, dodged Friars with footwork and eventually drew a foul. Bloznalis took the free kick, but it went just above the crossbar.
Despite four strong games in a row, and a two-game win streak, Feldman is not ready to say the worst is behind the Terriers.
“I would never say that,” she said. “I don’t think about it like that. If I thought about things that big right now, I wouldn’t be focused on the right things. We are preparing for our first Patriot League game and we want to certainly keep the momentum going.”
