BALTIMORE – The Haverford College women's soccer team met No. 6 Johns Hopkins on Saturday night under the lights of Homewood Field. The two sides came in as the final two unbeaten and untied teams remaining in Centennial Conference play. Haverford was carrying a five-match winning streak into the conference clash, while the Blue Jays had won six straight coming into Saturday night.
The match-up was everything you would expect on paper, unfortunately for the Fords (5-3, 2-1 CC) the Blue Jays (9-1, 3-0 CC) were able to create just enough momentum during the second half for an eventual 2-0 win on their home turf.
Haverford created some quality chances during the opening half. Isabella Gross had the first chance for the Fords inside the box as she settled the possession, but saw Haverford's first shot of match stopped by the JHU goalkeeper during the 22nd minute of play. Less than a minute later, Sydney West tracked a ball down in the Fords' attacking third. However, her shot was also saved to deny another strong scoring opportunity.
Johns Hopkins had the first chances of the second half, sending a shot just over the crossbar during the 49th minute of play. Nevertheless, the Blue Jays broke the scoreless deadlock during the 55th minute of game action as Emily Maheras gained possession inside of the 18 and was able to beat the keeper to corner for the 1-0 advantage.
Haverford had three possessions called back in the second half for being offside. The Fords' only shot during the second half, which came off the foot of Katie Safter, was blocked by the JHU defense as the Fords were unable to create any more pressure on the Blue Jays' keeper. Johns Hopkins added its second goal of the night with less than nine minutes remaining. The Blue Jays finished the match with a 7-4 advantage in shots. Ali Weiner and Hannah Friedrich once again shared the workload in goal with both keepers making one save in their respective halves.
Women's soccer will now open the month of October with two more Centennial Conference matches this upcoming week. The Fords welcome Ursinus to Walton Field this Wednesday at 4 p.m. and will battle Gettysburg next Saturday at 1 p.m. Haverford will be home a total of five times during the team's eight games during the final month of the regular season.