In what has been a constant during the 2014 season for the Boston University women’s soccer team, junior forward Jenna Fisher – the Terriers’ leading scorer – made her presence felt on both sides of the pitch Saturday afternoon against the United States Military Academy.
After registering zero shots over the first 45 minutes of play, the Terriers (5-3-2, 1-0-1 Patriot League) ramped up their efforts in the second half, tallying seven shots while also keeping Army (4-5-1, 1-0-1 Patriot League) off-balance with various substitutions. In the 54th minute, BU coach Nancy Feldman went as far as to empty out her entire bench as all seven starters returned to the match after having sat out since halftime.
Fisher made an immediate impact in her return, as the Longmeadow native scored the equalizer for the Terriers in the 65th minute on an accurate pass from senior forward Taylor Krebs. Fisher’s major contribution to the box score came just five minutes after she saved a near goal by Army, as she just got her foot on the ball as it was about to trickle in the net.
“It was kind of a scramble in the box, and I just tried to keep my feet ready and when it came to me, I just tried to clear it as far away from the goal as possible,” Fisher said.
The Terriers have found much better luck in the second half of games, with BU struggling to get much momentum going early on in most of their matches during the 2014 campaign. Eight of the Terrier’s ten goals this season have come in the second half of matches.
“I thought in the second half, the reason we were able to get more shots, happens way before the shot,” Feldman said. “It’s winning the individual battles. It’s running through balls. It’s not the soccer part of the soccer game. It’s the game part of the soccer game.”
Fisher has been a huge part of these second-half surges as she has appeared in every game and leads the team in shots on goal and game-winning goals, including last week’s game winner in the 59th minute of the Terrier’s 1-0 win over the United States Naval Academy on Sept. 20.
Feldman made it a point to emphasize the progression of the team through the entirety of the game and not just the second half.
“I don’t have magic words,” Feldman said. “…My job is to do the work during the week. I felt really good about the training.”
Doug covers women's soccer and other sports for the Daily Free Press. When he's not doing schoolwork, writing, or being a social butterfly on campus, he enjoys playing the piano, or hitting the course for a round of golf.
