Three is a magic number, or so it seemed at Nickerson Field. The Boston University women's soccer team won its fifth, three-goal game of the season, using an inspired second-half performance to take care of the University of Connecticut in a shutdown 3-0 victory.
BU (5-5-0) completed its out-of-conference schedule in style, utilizing a variety of weapons to avenge its 1-0 loss to UConn (4-3-2) in the first round of last year's NCAA tournament. The Terriers, facing by far their toughest schedule in years, now head into America East play with a .500 record.
The team, long reliant on graduate student forward Lisa Kevorkian and junior forward Jessica Luscinski for offense, received contributions from a variety of sources.
Sophomore forward Adrienne Anderson and junior back Lina Cords netted their first goals of the season after Luscinski had opened the scoring early in the second.
BU got the first chance of the game as Luscinski made a nice dribble in the box and dished the ball off to Kevorkian. The graduate student was denied her seventh goal of the season by a great save from UConn goalkeeper Jessica Dulski.
The Huskies gathered themselves later in the first to control the play. BU freshman goalie Kelly King calmly handled a bevy of long-distance shots; she did her best work in the 28th minute, saving a dipping shot by UConn's leading scorer Jessica Shufelt. King then preserved the tie yet again two minutes later, making a diving save at the left post on a strike from senior Elise Fugowski.
"When goalkeepers don't make saves look that hard, boy, are they playing well," said BU coach Nancy Feldman. "I think [King] and [junior goalkeeper]Alice Binns are both doing a great job at doing that. Both our goalkeepers are doing terrific. Isn't that a good problem to have?"
After the break, the Terriers returned to form and provided an extended break for Binns, BU's usual second half goalkeeper. After maintaining possession for the majority of the time, BU's pressure finally paid off in the 55th, as a beautiful run by Kevorkian saw her alone at the right of the penalty box. The forward unselfishly crossed the ball to Luscinski, who put it in the net for a 1-0 lead.
The strike continued the red-hot form for the junior from Bedford, NH. Luscinski's goal counted as her third in four games.
BU continued its pressure afterwards. A cross by freshman midfielder Kylie Strom in the 58th minute was put in the goal by a nifty back heel from Anderson.
The bang-bang play gave the Terriers a 2-0 lead, but they were not done yet. Six minutes later, Luscinski's cross was met by a thundering header from Cords. The junior, having a renaissance year after missing 2009 due to injury, almost added another off another corner in the 82nd. All three of the Terriers' goals were off a cross.
"We did want to attack them wide because they fit two center midfielders and also have two front center backs." Feldman said. "I thought it would be difficult to break down the middle of the field so if we were to get success, it was going to come from the outside. We also scouted that their goalkeeper likes to stay on the line, so the coaches made a point to the team that if you can put a few more through-balls to the edge of the box, the goalie might not come out."
Previously over the weekend, BU also recorded an identical 3-0 victory over Harvard University on Thursday. The Terriers received goals from Luscinski, Kevorkian and junior midfielder Brittany Heist.
BU will begin the AE portion of its schedule by hosting the University of New Hampshire next Sunday at 1 p.m.
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