Going into Sunday afternoon’s game at Syracuse, Boston College women’s soccer was on an eight-game winless streak, having not captured a win since Sept. 7. That all changed thanks to Amalia Dray.
“It probably wasn’t our best performance today, but it’s a great result,” BC head coach Chris Watkins said.
The Eagles’ (5–6–5, 1–5–2 Atlantic Coast) trip to upstate New York resulted in their first ACC win of the season, as they defeated conference foe Syracuse (5–7–4, 1–6–1) 1–0.
BC’s lone goal came with 12:58 left in the first half after an official review that followed a seemingly standard BC corner kick. The resulting call was an inside-the-box handball on Syracuse, leading to a penalty kick for the Eagles.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, sophomore defender Dray booted a shot to the bottom-left corner of the net.
Syracuse goalie Shea Vanderbosch guessed correctly as she dove to the same side as Dray’s shot. But the kick was too well placed, and the ball sailed past Vanderbosch’s hand to put BC on the board.
Dray’s goal turned out to be the only one of the night. It brought her to three goals this season, tied for second-most on BC’s roster.
Aided by impressive play from freshman Emily Mara, the Eagles’ offense was able to generate plenty of opportunities, but struggled to capitalize and end those possessions with the ball in the net.
“I thought we could’ve had a couple more goals, but we’re creating better and better chances, and I was proud of that,” Watkins said.
The Eagles ended the day with five shots on goal to Syracuse’s two, both of which were saved by 5-foot-11 goalkeeper Olivia Shippee as she posted her seventh shutout of the season.
The Orange’s best opportunity to score came as the final seconds of the first half ticked away, and Jasmine Nixon hit a shot to the top center of BC’s net.
Shippee leapt up to make the save, however, deflecting the ball out of bounds and keeping the Orange off the board as the game headed into halftime.
“We’ve got a super athletic and informed goalkeeper who’s doing a great job,” Watkins said. “We’re a good defensive group and have been all year.”
Both the Eagles and the Orange had been eliminated as contenders to make the ACC tournament before their game even began. The game grew physical regardless, as the Eagles remained resolute to maintain their lead throughout the second half.
Despite seeing room to improve, Watkins said Sunday’s game was an encouraging victory for a young group that has struggled to turn close, hard-fought games into wins.
“We need this experience,” Watkins said. “We need wins on the road in the ACC with the youngest team in the country. That’s huge for us.”
