NEW HAVEN, Conn. ? A couple bounces, quite literally, made the difference in a 1-0 win Saturday at Yale for the Princeton women's soccer team.
The victory raises the Tigers to 4-1-1 on the season and 1-0 in the Ivy League as Princeton defeated Yale for the first time since 2004.
Princeton's goal came when Lauren Whatley's corner kick in the 19th minute dropped close to the goal line and somehow found a way through a group of players to bounce into the net.
The goal ended up being the difference, but the Tigers were on defense for much of the second half against a resurgent Yale team.
“We battled, we got an early goal and we defended well,” Princeton head coach Julie Shackford said. “It was an important win on the road.”
Yale outshot Princeton 10-6, with a 7-2 margin in the second half. Princeton goalkeeper Alyssa Pont made four saves, three of which came in the first half.
“Aly Pont came up big for us and our defense played really well,” Shackford said. “We knew that they would put pressure on us. They were down a goal, they're at home and we withstood it. They're a very good team.”
In the second half, Princeton almost had the tables turned when a Yale corner kick inside of 14 minutes to play bounced in front of the goal and hit the right post, but went back into the field of play. Five minutes later, a shot bounded off the chest of Pont and up, hitting the underside of the crossbar and bouncing away.
The Tigers will face another strong Connecticut team when they host Fairfield (7-1-2) Tuesday at 7 p.m. on Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium.
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