After a somewhat slow start for the Fordham women’s soccer team, the Rams kicked off their Atlantic 10 (A-10) conference play with two games over the past week. These A-10 games are critical for the team if they want to reach the A-10 championship at the end of the regular season.

The Rams started their A-10 play on the road against St. Bonaventure University. In the first half, Fordham dominated possession and were knocking on the door. They were finally rewarded in the second half when Fordham took the lead via senior forward Kristen Cocozza. Cocozza made a run at the top of the box and fired a shot from 20 yards that got past St. Bonaventure goalkeeper Chiara Gottinger, giving the Rams the lead in the 58th minute and Cocozza her first goal of the season. 

Fordham continued to add pressure, forcing Gottinger into four more saves. In the final 30 minutes of the game. St. Bonaventure also had some good chances, forcing Rams junior goalkeeper Serena Mensah into two saves in that same time period. After 90 minutes of play, Fordham held onto their 1-0 lead to kickoff their A-10 play with a win, the first time since 2019 that the Rams were able to achieve this feat.

A few days later, Fordham finally returned home for homecoming weekend as they faced A-10 rival George Washington University. Fordham kicked off the scoring in the 15th minute with Cocozza netting in a second consecutive game, blasting a shot from around 25 yards out into the right side of the net to give the hosts the lead. Unfortunately, that lead didn’t last long with the visitors equalizing in the 27th minute courtesy of Rachel Sorkenn who scored her team-leading sixth goal of the year. George Washington then snatched a 2-1 lead right before halftime via Abby Mansoor who took a long range effort from around 30 yards that found its way into the back of the net to give the visitors the lead. 

In the second half, Fordham hunted for an equalizer. In the 52nd minute, they found it via freshman forward Natalie Velde. Sophomore midfielder Ryann Lucas took the initial shot that hit the post, with the rebound falling to Velde who slotted her second goal of the season into the back of the net to tie the game at two. Both teams then looked for an equalizer, but neither team was able to find that precious goal, ending the game in a 2-2 draw. 

After these matches, Fordham’s overall record is 2-6-1 with their A-10 conference record at 1-0-1. The Rams play one more A-10 match this week as they go back on the road to Virginia for a clash against George Mason University this Sunday at 1 p.m., which can be streamed on ESPN+.