By Andrew Crooks, Contributor
This past Saturday the Canisius women’s soccer team played the Quinnipiac Bobcats in MAAC conference play. This game had heavy implications behind it after the two teams met last year in the MAAC tournament semifinal, where the game was ended by an 81st-minute penalty kick goal taken by Quinnipiac to propel the Bobcats to a 1–0 win.
Canisius had a strong start to the season, heading into the game with a record of 4–1–4. However, the Bobcats stellar offense proved to be too much for the Griffs to handle as Quinnipiac won 2–0 this past Saturday. This moved the Griffs MAAC regular season record to 1–1–1.
It was a tough day for the Golden Griffins as they struggled to get anything started offensively; the Bobcats outshot the Griffs 21 to 2 this past weekend. Sophomore midfielder Skylar Cornell had the only shot on goal for Canisius, with junior forward Madeline Weltin being the only other shot attempt for Canisius.
Junior goalkeeper Jordan Spencer recorded a huge save in the 30th minute to preserve the 0–0 tie through 45 minutes, but the Quinnipiac offense proved to be too strong in the second half to keep the shutout. They added a pair of goals in the 48th and 82nd minute which proved to be the difference-maker. This was Canisius’s first loss since Aug. 17 when they dropped their season opener against Cornell.
The Golden Griffins head coach Ryan Louis showed his trust in the starters, as nine players played the full 90 minutes. He also let junior midfielder Maddy Ingraham make her first start of the season for Canisius.
After Saturday’s MAAC games, the Canisius Golden Griffins moved down to a tie for fourth place at 1–1–1, and the Quinnipiac Bobcats moved up to a share of first place with a 2–0 MAAC record.
The Canisius women’s soccer team will look to bounce back after this loss as they face the Iona Gaels on Saturday, Sept. 30. This will be the fourth game of the MAAC regular season for the team: it also serves as the Golden Griffin’s Senior Day. Kickoff is set to take place at 1 p.m. at the Demske Sports Complex for what will be a must-win game.