By Joseph Caruso
Sports Editor
Women’s soccer kicked off New Jersey Athletic Conference play with a win against Kean and a loss against Stockton, respectively.
The College traveled to Union to face off against Kean in their opening NJAC match against the Cougars on Saturday.
The College came out firing, absolutely pelting Kean with shots on goal, and that was the story of the game. The Lions put a ridiculous 36 shots up, 11 of which being on goal to just four from the Cougars.
Despite the laughable difference in time of possession and attempts, the Lions had nothing to show for their domination, as the first half was a stalemate at zero despite the nonstop pressure from the College’s offense.
Sophomore Maggie Murphy paced the Lions in attempts with seven shots, including three on goal, registering more attempts herself than the entire Kean squad.
Already having three draws on the young season, it looked like it may be headed that way for the College as they continued to come up empty late into the second half despite the numerous opportunities.
However, at the 85:17 mark, sophomore Jenny Ward scored on a header via junior Alyssa Alfano on the College’s sixth header of the second half, breaking the tie and giving them a one goal lead that would hold until the end.
After a win in their opening NJAC contest, the College hosted Stockton on Wednesday night for their first conference matchup at Lions Stadium.
Contrary to their previous matchup, this was a high-scoring back and forth affair between the Lions and Ospreys that saw four different goals scored in the first half, three of which were scored by Stockton.
The College got on the board when sophomore Taylor Krott scored on a chance assisted by Alfano. Alfano, who made Second Team All-NJAC in 2024 also added a goal of her own in the second half to bring the College within one at the 73:19 to make the score 3-2.
The Lions continued to put the pressure on Stockton, and similarly to their previous matchup, they hammered the shots on goal all night, putting up 33 shots, 13 of which being on the goal compared to just seven from Stockton.
Unfortunately, their efforts fell short as Stockton was able to hang on and win 3-2, as the College fell to 4-4-3 on the season and 1-1 in NJAC play. This loss snaps a 22 game unbeaten streak that the Lions had over Stockton that dated back to 2008.
The College is back on the road to take on Montclair State Saturday, Oct. 4, for their next conference matchup.
