Conference play continues for the Oswego State women’s soccer team as the end of the season approaches. 

The Lakers went on the road to Oneonta to take on the Red Dragons on Saturday, Oct. 7. From the start it was all Lakers as they applied constant pressure in the Red Dragons zone. Due to the high pressure the Lakers finished the first half with six total shots and six corner attempts. Despite the Lakers ripping shots from all around the box, the Red Dragons stood strong defensively, not allowing any goals.

The Lakers came out in the second half with the same pressure, but this time they lit the scoreboard. At the 76-minute mark, junior Katie Delgrosso netted the first goal off a pass from Amber McDermott. With under ten minutes left in the game, the Lakers added an insurance goal by Sara Marinaro to take a 2-0 lead, putting the Red Dragons away. 

The Lakers dominated the stat sheet, leading the game in shots, 13-2 and corner attempts, 11-1. Coach Brian McGrane saw good minutes from his bench as the substitutes combined for five shots and the only two goals of the game. 

After the win against Oneonta, the Lakers returned home to play SUNY Geneseo on Wednesday, Oct. 11. It was a back-and-forth first half as both teams got a lot of shot attempts, eight from the Knights and five from the Lakers. However, the big difference was in the saves department as Lakers goalie Anderson Perri saved all six on-goal attempts, keeping the score tied at zero after the first 45 minutes. 

To begin the second half the Knights buried the first goal of the game off the foot of Liv Raucci but the Lakers answered at the 71-minute mark with a penalty kick goal from Emma Rechtorovic, the first goal of her college career. After Rechtorovic’s game-tying goal, the Knights attempted to regain the lead with two shot attempts but both went wide. In the dying seconds of the game, the Lakers shut down the final corner attempt by the Knights, ending the game in a 1-1 tie. 

The Lakers did get outshot 15-8 but Perri had seven big saves to keep the Lakers in the game. 

The Lakers were back home for another game as they welcomed conference-leading SUNY New Paltz on Saturday, Oct. 14. Lakers Jackie Marquardt had a good look just 48 seconds into the game but Hawks goalie Maddie Franklin saved her attempt. The Hawks answered with a few shots of their own but none found the back of the net. After the first half, the Lakers led in shot attempts 6-5 and corners 5-3, but the scoreboard showed double zeroes. 

The second half saw back-and-forth action as each team had three shots apiece. Both teams had a chance at the end of the game to put the first goal on the board as Rechtorovic had an attempt at the 88-minute mark and the Hawks had a chance at the 90-minute mark. With neither team converting their late game chances the game ended in a 0-0 tie.

After two straight ties, the Lakers headed back on the road to take on Buffalo State. The Lakers came out of the opening whistle ready to play as they got two shot attempts in the first six minutes of action. The Lakers kept up their offensive pressure and Delgrosso delivered the first goal of the game to help put the Lakers ahead 1-0. The Bengals struggled to transition from defense to offense and in the dying seconds of the first half Mariano netted the second goal of the game for the Lakers. After 45 minutes the Lakers tallied seven shots compared to the Bengals’ two, but neither team had any corner attempts. 

With a 2-0 lead the Lakers did not take their foot off the gas as they continued to rip shots in the Bengals side of the field. The Bengals continued to struggle offensively, only getting three shot attempts off in the second half. The consistent offensive pressure by the Lakers put the game out of reach and helped them secure the 2-0 victory. 

Despite zero corners in the first half the Lakers racked up seven in the second half and finished with 17 shots, 10 being on goal. Anderson did not have to do too much in the net but stood strong when she was needed as she finished with three saves. 

After a win against the Bengals, the Lakers are now 6-2-6 on the season with one game remaining. The Lakers will look for their first home win on the season as they host SUNY Cortland on senior day at 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 21 at Laker Turf Stadium.

Photo via: Oswego Athletics