Sept. 2, 2006
Box Score
The George Mason women's soccer team was more aggressive on Saturday afternoon in an unexpected home match against Georgetown and it showed in every statistical category as Mason had more shots and more fouls than the Hoyas. The result was a 2-0 win for Mason over Georgetown in the D.C. Invitational. The match had originally been scheduled for Friday at Georgetown but rain postponed the match and field conditions altered the location. Mason found itself the home team and the Patriots played well in front of the home crowd.
Mason (2-0-1) had 12 first-half shots to Georgetown's two and the Patriots capitalized in the 22nd minute when Rachel Wiggins scored her third goal of the season. Laura Salichs passed the ball up the middle of the field to Wiggins who had inside position on her defender. Goal keeper Jade Higgins charged the ball and Wiggins beat her to it. The junior from Acworth, Ga. headed the ball ahead to herself and around Higgins, then tapped the ball into the empty net to give herself a goal in her third straight game.
The second half saw Mason continue its strong attack as the Patriots outshot Georgetown, 10-7 in the second half. The Patriots iced the game in the 58th minute. Sasha Vido centered the ball from the left wing and Wiggins headed the ball in the box and found Nilani Duarte on the right side. She put the ball into the right corner and Mason had a 2-0 lead and all the offense it would need. The Patriots finished the match with a 16-4 edge in shots on goal. Mason also had a 6-0 lead in corner kicks. Continuing the theme of aggressive play, Mason was whistled for 12 fouls while Georgetown (0-1-2) was called for just two. Both Mason and Georgetown entered the weekend unranked but having received votes in Soccer Buzz's Mid-Atlantic regional poll.
Mason was outscored 37-28 last season and the Patriots recorded just three shutouts on the year. Already this year those trends seem to be reversing themselves as Mason has a 7-2 edge in goals as the Patriots earned their first shutout of the campaign. Mason has held the opposition scoreless over the past 146 minutes. They will take that streak into action tomorrow as the Patriots take on American at Noon at Georgetown. The Hoyas will take on Duquesne at 3 p.m. to conclude the D.C. Invitational.
The opening game of the D.C. Invitational was played at George Mason Stadium and American came away with a 3-1 win over Duquesne. The game was scoreless into the 69th minute despite numerous scoring chances by the Eagles. When the drought finally ended, it was Duquesne breaking the 0-0 tie. The Dukes' Jenna Farneti scored at the 68:10 mark on an assist from Audra Mathews. Mathews took a direct kick just outside the box off an American foul and Farneti put the ball in from about one yard out.
American didn't wait long to answer, though, as the Eagles scored three times in the final 15 minutes, tying the match and taking the lead in a two-minute span. Katelynn Donovan scored unassisted in the 76th minute to make it 1-1 and just moments later, Christina Gonzalez' header off a pass from Meg Runeari made it 2-1. The Eagles scored an insurance goal when Donovan put in a rebound off a Lindsey Miller miss. American had an 11-2 edge in shots on goal and a 19-7 advantage in total shots. American (2-0-0) holds an 8-1 scoring edge over the opposition this season. Duquesne (0-2-1) enters its match with Georgetown, looking for its first win of the season. The same can be said of the Hoyas, who were unbeaten heading into the weekend.
