Emerald City Gem

After traveling across the country to participate in the Husky/Nike Invitational in Seattle, the Boston University women’s soccer team is coming back to the East Coast with two more wins and its longest unbeaten streak to open a season since 1996.

“We feel like we are starting to prove ourselves as one of the top teams in the country – being able to play anybody and beat anybody,” said BU coach Nancy Feldman. “BU has given us the opportunity to do that by supporting us to come out [to Washington] and we take it seriously.”

In the Terriers (5-0-1) first game of the invitational on Friday, they took on the University of Washington (1-3-1) in a battle that would ultimately be decided by a defensive miscue.

BU was outshot 16-6; however, the Huskies only had six shots on goal, five of which were blocked by sophomore goalkeeper Kelly King and one that the defense managed to block. The game served as King’s second-straight shutout this season.

“We’re getting great goalkeeping,” Feldman said, “and we’re getting great heroic efforts in the last moment when we need someone to step up and do something big.

“Someone brave that makes a good chance not as good a chance, just enough pressure to take the other player off a great attempt that might be a half-great attempt by the time its all said and done.”

The Terriers sole goal of the game was scored in the 47th minute when a Washington player scored an own goal during a scramble inside the box, giving BU its first road win of the season.

While the Huskies tried to get on the board at the end of regulation with two corner kicks during the final minute, their attempts were thwarted by the Terrier defense.

On Sunday, the Terriers faced off against No. 8 University of Portland (2-3-0). For the second time, BU was outshot by its opponent, a difference that was most noticeable during the first half, a period when, according to Feldman, the team was playing physically, but not mentally.

“We had a very, very poor first half,” Feldman said. “We need to be playing with our brains as much as we do with our effort and that was something that we didn’t have in the first half of this game and that’s something we grabbed back in the second half, which was a very good sign.”

Despite this mental lapse, the Terriers were able to take control of the game during the 20th minute on a goal by freshman forward Taylor Krebs, her third of the year, on a pass from senior defender Lina Cords, notching it into the upper right corner of the net.

“[Taylor’s] a motor that won’t quit,” Feldman said. “She is just always, always going hard – practices or games she just has a mentality that is supremely aggressive and strong.

“Just her compete level and her motor are exceptional. She puts herself into places that put her in a position to score goals.”

During the course of the game, the post became one of BU’s most valuable defenders as the Pilots ricocheted three of their shots off it.

“We got a little lucky,” Feldman said. “Portland hit a few posts and that’s in the first half when we weren’t playing very well.

“We were chasing the game, we were scrambling and they were getting too many chances, too many good chances.”

In the 70th minute sophomore midfielder Kylie Strom scored her second goal of the season on a shot to the upper right corner of the net to increase the Terriers’ lead to 2-0. Senior goalkeeper Alice Binns had three saves for her third win and second shutout of the season.

“Our goal is to perform, to be ready to perform on game day and bring our best game and make some noise with us playing and beating some teams that are very highly thought of,” Feldman said. “Portland is a team that’s a top ten nationally and Washington started the season in a top-20 ranking. We’ve represented ourselves very well here winning the two games.”