By Drew Casey
Entering the weekend with a 4-1-0 record, the women’s soccer team continued its winning ways. On Friday afternoon it defeated Iona 1-0 and on Sunday the squad bested The Citadel 2-0. The two wins put the team’s winning streak at six, which is tied for the longest such streak in program history. The 2008 team also reached this mark, but was unable to get to seven consecutive victories.
“What’s been working well is our style of play,” senior midfielder and forward Maria Lorena Canicatti said. “Trying to keep it to feet, pass it around, keep our composure— so we’re doing a good job of just staying calm.”
After defeating LIU Brooklyn on Sept. 5, the team traveled a short distance to Iona’s campus in New Rochelle, New York, for a Friday matinee contest. Neither team mustered a shot on goal in the first half and the game remained scoreless until the 77th minute. At that time Sydney White fired a shot that deflected off an Iona defender and ended up in the back of the net. The goal was officially an own goal, but proved to be enough to give Fordham the win. Megan Fitzgerald and Ally White combined for the shutout between the pipes, playing a half each.
Fewer than 48 hours later, the team returned to the pitch for a matchup with The Citadel at Jack Coffey Field. Fordham fired off 20 shots, nine of which were on goal, and dominated the visiting Bulldogs. The Rams opened the scoring in the 16th minute after Bulldogs goalkeeper Naomi Carter made three early saves. Kate McDonnell’s shot struck the post, and Canicatti corralled the rebound and put the ball in the back of the net. In the second half, senior Jessica Widmann added her third goal of the season after Canicatti’s shot hit the crossbar. White earned the complete match shutout.
The wins put the Rams at 6-1-0, the best mark to start a season in program history. The team is also perfect at home and is outscoring opponents 7-1 at Jack Coffey Field.
“It’s that home field advantage,” first-year head coach Jessica Clinton said. “We sleep in our own beds. We know what we’re getting for the day. We’re on a certain timeline.”
While the team is having such great success, they are poised to remain focused on its goals, which include staying perfect at home, improving on the road and qualifying for the Atlantic 10 Championship.
“We just want to come out to training everyday looking to improve,” Clinton said. “There’s always room for improvement because each team that we play is different. It’s just knowing who our opponents are and what our strengths are and how we can improve and how we can break down other teams.”
The team will look to make history and win a seventh consecutive game for the first time in program history on Friday night when the Rams visit the Providence Friars. They will then play on Sunday afternoon at Stony Brook. The conference season does not begin until October.
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Drew Casey is a Staff Writer for The Fordham Ram.
