Women’s Soccer Ends Season in Sweet Sixteen
The most dangerous minutes in the game of soccer come at the ends of each half. With the clock winding down and endurance lagging, the final five minutes of a period of play are when defenses begin to sag and offensive opportunities begin to spark. Despite a strong defensive showing, the Women of Troy fell victim to this phenomenon in their 0–2 Sweet Sixteen loss against first-seed Virginia on Sunday.
Coming off of a dominant win over Princeton, USC was geared up for a game against one of their toughest opponents of the year. As a women’s soccer superpower, Virginia previously outscored opponents 10–0 in the last three years of the Sweet Sixteen round. The Cavaliers’ lineup included senior Emily Sonnett, a midfielder and defender who recently played all 90 minutes of the U.S. national team’s game against Brazil.
However, USC played against teams such as the University of North Carolina and Duke this season, and their ability to stand up to top-ranked teams was tested early on. The team’s confidence was clear from the starting whistle and within five minutes junior midfielder Morgan Andrews had already whipped the first shot of the night at the goal.
The rest of the first half was a back-and-forth battle, with the Women of Troy making strong runs along either flank but unable to target their shots on frame. The defense, however, put on a smothering showing against the offensive engine of Virginia. Junior Kayla Mills clamped down against a dangerous midfield, breaking up passes and forcing the Virginia offense to use the sidelines rather than attack through the middle.
But a single defensive mistake at the 42 minute mark ended up being the game changer. On an airborne cross from the left flank, Virginia senior Makenzy Doniak was left open and collected the ball less than six feet from the goal. She took a single touch to the right and then buried her shot in the net. With less than three minutes left in the half, the Women of Troy barely had time to collect before heading into the locker room for halftime.
The late goal swung the momentum of the game behind Virginia. The USC offense began to struggle with a demon from earlier on in the season — the inability to finish in scoring opportunities. USC shots bounced wide or lacked the speed to slip past the Virginia keeper. The offense stalled in the middle of the second half, and the highly-skilled Virginia midfield kept the ball pushed forward and out of their defensive half of the field.
The Virginia offense kept up a steady fire of shots, forcing junior goalkeeper Sammy Jo Prudhomme to make several dazzling stops, one of which came from only six yards away from goal. The relentless attack was difficult to steadily defend, and another goal late in the half — this time a speedy drive off of a counterattack — sealed the win for Virginia.
Saturday’s game closed out the 2015 season with a record of 15–6–2, marking the third USC team to make it to the third round of the NCAA playoffs. Although the loss was bitter for many players — particularly the seniors, who tweeted out thank-you’s to the program and the Trojan community — the strong showing against a Virginia team used to pummeling opponents offensively proved that the USC program is building into one that can compete not just in the Pac-12, but across the NCAA.
