On a frigid and gray Saturday afternoon, the Ithaca College women’s soccer team took the field for its final regular season game against the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Engineers on Nov. 2. The Bombers consistently capitalized on gaps in the Engineers’ defense, securing a first-place finish in the Liberty League with a 3-0 win.
From the clock’s start, the Engineers didn’t wait around for opportunities to push upfield, but stray passes from RPI put Ithaca in possession — a common occurrence throughout the game. In the first quarter, there were strong efforts by the opponent to keep the ball in Bombers’ territory, but clearances by a solid defense seemed to always connect with a ready Ithaca offense.
Despite meticulous ball handling and clean passing, it was not an artistic play that set the Bombers up for their first goal of the game. Just under 10 minutes into the first half, junior forward Ava Detorie took a free kick that lasered toward graduate student forward Rosie Bostian. With a well-aimed header to the gap in the top right corner of the net, Bostian put the Bombers in the lead.
Ithaca’s bench had been vocal since the first whistle, but the cheering escalated as voices ricocheted throughout Carp Wood Field. Bostian said the sideline support is noticeable on the field.
“Our bench means the world,” Bostian said. “Hearing everyone be so supportive, … it keeps me going the whole game.”
After the goal, both teams played with a new energy as they pushed each other up and down the field. The Engineers took fewer chances when the Bombers got close to their goal, clearing the ball away rather than making focused passes.
Ithaca’s defense chased down the opposition’s offense, leaving only long-ball scoring opportunities for the team in red. At the 19:46 mark, a perfectly aimed shot by RPI junior forward Sarah Sedlacek floated toward the goal. The stadium went silent as both sides watched senior goalkeeper Grace Hickey leap into the air, just barely tapping the ball off its trajectory to shut down the Engineers’ hopes of tying up the half.
The ball didn’t wander far, though, as the red offense kept pushing into the home team’s box. Some slip-ups by the Bombers’ defense made for an uncharacteristically stressful 10 minutes. By the 30-minute mark, Ithaca was back in control.
RPI had some strong runs, but Ithaca’s defensive game was stronger. With every change of possession in favor of the Bombers, midfielders like junior Kaelyn Fernandez artistically weaved through seas of red to create opportunities for the forwards.
While the scoreboard remained at 1-0 for the first half, it didn’t take long for the numbers to change. Four minutes into the second half, Detorie received a long pass that she sent toward graduate student midfield-forward Ally Stanton. Stanton lightly tapped it in for the second goal of the match.
The Bombers’ aggressive defense supported Hickey in creating a shutout as the Engineers were allowed only three shots in the second half. With 22 minutes left in the game, Bostian came back in for her second goal, assisted by junior defender Reese Ruegamer.
The rest of the game dragged as Ithaca stalled and RPI struggled to make it into the opposing half of the field. The sun started to peek out from behind the clouds in the final minute, and when the last whistle blew, Ithaca’s players rushed toward the goal to celebrate its first Liberty League No. 1-seed finish.
“We came in with the mentality that if we show up and work hard, we deserve to be in first place in the league, and that’s what we did,” Bostian said.
The Bombers will host the Liberty League semifinals Nov. 8, playing the lowest-seeded team — either the winner of RIT vs Skidmore College, or Clarkson University if the Golden Knights upset Vassar College.
