The women’s soccer team finished the 2009 regular season with a 1–1 tie against Skidmore College at a muddy Carp Wood Field yesterday. It was the Bombers only tie of the season, as they finished with a record of 12–3–1 and a ranking of 27 by the www.d3soccer.com weekly poll.

Senior forward Winnie Adrien scored her fifth goal of the season in the 35th minute to help the Bombers jump out to a 1–0 lead. The assist from freshman forward Rachael Palladino gave her seven on the season.

Skidmore struck back early in the second half, catching the Bombers off guard with a goal off a rebound from the right side of the net.

Head Coach Mindy Quigg said she was displeased with the mental lapse that caused Skidmore’s first and only goal, even though the Bombers came out with a point in the standings. 

“We cannot continue to give up goals that other teams aren’t earning,” she said.

The Bombers also missed many scoring chances in the front of the net throughout the game, outshooting Skidmore 34–7, but only managing to put one of them in the back of the net.

Parts of the game were played in high winds and pouring rain, but senior forward and midfielder Emily Mogk said the weather didn’t play a factor in the draw.

“The elements weren’t great, but they weren’t great for both teams,” she said. “We missed a couple of chances we should have put in the back of the net, but sometimes it just doesn’t go your way.”   

Quigg said the team was out of sync during the game, as the Bombers did not execute early scoring chances that they had converted in other matches.

“We had difficulty keeping our footing,” she said. “We didn’t follow up with second shots and we hit through the crossbar too many times.”

Junior Jessica Platt played all 110 minutes in net, making three saves, including one in front with seven seconds remaining in regulation. While the game was a grind for Platt, she said the Ithaca defense was able to create turnovers and keep the ball out of the Bombers’ zone.

“We were definitely playing a lot through the backs and trying to avoid playing it through the middle,” she said. “Our defenders helped us move the ball to the outside and [the offense] didn’t get us the second goal that we wanted, but we were happy with the way the defense played.”

The Bombers will play Stevens Institute of Technology in the first semifinal game of the Empire 8 tournament Saturday at 11:30 a.m. at Carp Wood Field. Should they win, they will face the winner of the second semifinal game between Nazareth College and Saint John Fisher College.