The Montclair State Women’s Soccer team returned to MSU Soccer Park on Wednesday looking to bounce back from their loss to Hartford. SUNY New Paltz was in town, and this match was off to a hot start right away.
It took four minutes for the Red Hawks to get on the board when Madeline Lesica found the back of the net for her 3rd goal of the year off assists from Aileen Cahill and Kylie Pendergast. New Paltz would answer quickly however when Kelly Licata tallied an unassisted goal and we were tied at 1 under 10 minutes in.
Cahill put Montclair back on top in the 33rd minute, sending a rocket past the SUNY keeper that was served up beautifully by Julie Baker. The Red Hawks would go into the half with a 2-1 advantage over SUNY.
Less than 10 minutes out of the break, New Paltz was able to equalize the score when Brooke Kelleher was able to get by Red Hawks keeper Haley Martin. It looked like Deja Vu all over again for the Montclair as they took a 1 goal lead into the half on Sunday and quickly fell behind and eventually fell to Hartford.
Pendergast quickly put any doubts to rest after receiving a pass from Meagan O’Callahan inside the box and finding the back of the net putting the Red Hawks up 3-2. The last push from SUNY was in the 78th minute, rocketing a shot on goal that Martin would stop and hold the lead for Montclair.
The Red Hawks hung on for a big 3-2 victory and notched their 2nd win of the year. It was a nice bounce back and they look to win back-to-back when they visit Swarthmore this Saturday.
