Coming off the heartbreaking loss to UNC in overtime last Sunday, Boston College women’s soccer was looking to break its six-game losing streak and bank its first ACC win of the season. The Eagles matched up against Louisville, which, though unranked, has had considerably more success in the ACC than BC has.
Luckily for the Eagles (7–7–1, 1–6–0), Louisville struggled heavily to convert its shots into goals, allowing BC to take off with an early lead that it was able to hold onto for the remainder of the match. Freshman goalkeeper Wiebke Willebrandt had a great showing for the Eagles, putting a swift stop to Louisville’s consistent efforts and handing BC a 2–1 win over Louisville (7–5–1, 3–4–0) for its first ACC win of the season.
The Cardinals started off strong, placing heavy offensive pressure on the Eagles right out of the gate. Despite their enthusiastic efforts to get on the scoreboard early, the Cardinals struggled to convert any of their early opportunities into points.
The Eagles held their own, matching the Cardinals’ fast-paced style. These efforts paid off around the 17-minute mark, as BC’s Laura Gouvin turned a beautifully placed corner kick into a goal.
The remainder of the first half was a lot of back and forth, as the Eagles attempted to build upon their early lead and the Cardinals strove to even out the score. Despite some close calls on both ends of the field, neither team capitalized on their shot opportunities, and the Eagles went into halftime leading the Cardinals by one.
The energy was high starting off the second half, as both the Eagles and the Cardinals were eager to make up for their numerous missed opportunities in the first half. Senior captain Jenna Bike broke the long scoreless period, netting a goal in the 49th minute. This goal brought the Eagles’ advantage up to two, marking their first 2–0 lead in conference play so far this year.
The rest of the half told a similar story to the first, as Louisville saw a plethora of opportunities with nothing to show for it. BC began to close in on the Cardinals by giving them fewer passing lanes, making it more difficult for Lousiville to move forward offensively.
The Cardinals’ frustration began to get the best of them, when Anouk Denton committed a foul and received a yellow card around the 71st-minute mark, handing the Eagles a penalty kick opportunity. Michela Agresti’s penalty kick was deflected by Louisville goalkeeper Gabby Kouzelos, and the score stayed put at 2–0.
As the clock wound down, the Eagles continued to focus on their defensive efforts, making things difficult for an already frustrated Louisville team. With three minutes left in the game, Louisville’s Julia Simon turned this frustration into motivation, finally breaking through the scoreless rut to put a shot in the back of the net.
Despite the late goal, BC held on to walk off by one, securing its first win in conference play so far this season.
Featured Image by Nicole Vagra / Heights Staff
