Senior forward Alex Mills battles Washington and Lee University (Va.) defender Aaron Cordova for the ball on Sept. 2. The game ended 0-0. (Natalie Sandlow/Staff Photographer)
Emory University men’s and women’s soccer teams faced University Athletic Association (UAA) rival Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) (Pa.) at home on Oct. 14. The women’s team tied the No. 2 team in the nation 3-3, and the men’s team won 2-1.
Women’s soccer gives up 2 late goals against Carnegie Mellon
Despite facing No. 2-ranked CMU, Emory fought hard. The Eagles controlled the pace and had better opportunities to score than the Tartans. Graduate forwards Sylvie Prepetit and Kylie Hall both had shots to give the Eagles the lead, but the score remained 0-0 heading into halftime.
After a quiet first half, CMU began the second strong. The Tartans forced sophomore goalkeeper Sophia Garcia to make four saves throughout the match. The breakthrough came with CMU senior midfielder Cecelia Dieterich’s free kick goal in the 63rd minute.
Emory responded well to the game’s opening goal. Freshman forward Kaitlyn Nimmer poked a loose ball past Tartan sophomore goalkeeper Abby O’Connor to tie the game in the 69th minute.
With the score tied at 1-1, the Eagles used their momentum to propel them forward. Freshman forward Emily Woodall powered a free kick past O’Connor in the 77th minute. She scored again with a headed goal from Hall’s cross to extend the lead to 3-1 four minutes later. Woodall said that scoring two goals to put Emory in the lead was an “amazing feeling,” and that the team showed “grit” to fight back.
With nine minutes remaining, the Tartans fought back. Tartan sophomore midfielder Jenna Hallbeck dribbled down the right side of Emory’s defense, crossing the ball for freshman forward Saveria Ulizzi to tap it past Garcia. Junior midfielder Ayana Curto capitalized on another free kick to tie the game 3-3 less than a minute later.
Nimmer said that the team showed great “improvement,” but after leading by two goals, they “should have won” the game.
“We’ve been struggling scoring,” Nimmer said. “It’s great to get three in the back of the net, but we just need to finish our game.”
Women’s Soccer Head Coach Sue Patberg said she had “mixed emotions” about the “disappointing” final score but that the game was both the “toughest” and the “best soccer” they’ve played this season.
“We had fight in us, and we played confidently,” Patberg said. “We scored three really good goals, and it had been a while since we’d scored some goals, especially against a great opponent like Carnegie Mellon.”
Emory has an overall season record of 5-3-3 and a 0-2-1 record in UAA conference play. The team will look to build on this result against Birmingham-Southern College (Ala.) on Oct. 18 at 5:30 p.m.
Patberg said that this performance was a “breakthrough” moment of the season so far.
“We’re a talented team, but we’ve struggled so far in the UAA,” Parberg said. “I think we just need to understand our capabilities and it’s going to be hard and you’re gonna have to fight … but we do have the fortitude to do that.”
Men’s soccer earn comeback win against Carnegie Mellon
The men’s soccer entered their match against CMU with a record of 8-1-3. Along with their high win percentage, the squad earned their first No. 3 ranking since 2003 after their win against Case Western Reserve University (Ohio) 1-0 on Oct. 7.
The Eagles had trouble converting on offense in the first half of the game. Emory had 12 missed shots against CMU sophomore goalkeeper Liam Ryan and received four fouls. Adding on to the squad’s slow start, CMU junior forward Josh Baugh scored in the 25th minute and closed out the first half with a one shot lead.
The Eagles came back firing on all cylinders after halftime. Quickly working the ball down toward the Tartan post and maintaining an aggressive position, freshman defender Julian Hee took the first shot of the half in the 50th minute.
In the 60th minute, graduate student forward Colton Myers took another shot followed by freshman defender Jaden Emoghene and junior midfielder Attila Sepkin. Senior forward Alejandro Gomez scored the first goal for the Eagles after putting the ball in the back of the net with an assist from junior defender Ryan Hayes, tying CMU 1-1.
The Tartans reacted quickly and fought back with two shots and a corner kick, but both attempts were blocked. With a pass from Gomez down the left, Emoghene got possession of the ball and in the 73rd minute, scored his first collegiate goal, delivering a 2-1 lead for Emory.
Both Gomez and Emoghene took two more consecutive shots late in the game. Emory’s defense proved to be a strong point in the closing of the second half, blocking four shots from CMU and ending in a victory. With the win, the Eagles drop to No. 7 in the nation.
Gomez called Emoghene’s goal “electric” and acknowledged the contributions of both upperclassmen and underclassmen.
“There’s really no difference between seniors, fifth years or freshmen,” Gomez said. “Everyone just feels together as a team — there’s no age difference — so seeing freshmen get all the minutes and work just as hard as everyone else, that’s been the best thing for me.”
Emoghene said the “morale” of the team is currently at an “all-time high.”
“There’s great energy with the boys, a lot of passion in the group.” Emoghene said. “I think that’s what carried us in a bunch of games, especially this one, coming back from 1-0 down.”
The men’s next home game is against UAA opponent Brandeis University (Mass.) on Oct. 20 at 7:30 p.m.
Madeline Shapiro (she/her) (26C) is from Stamford, Connecticut and is planning on majoring in creative writing and classic civilizations. She enjoys playing low-stakes games of soccer and spending time outdoors, as well as watching as many Premier League games as possible.
Sasha Melamud (she/her, 27C) is from Clearwater, Florida, planning on majoring in creative writing and spanish. In her free time, Melamud enjoys being out in the fresh air, fitness, and hanging out with friends.
