The Rowan women’s soccer team’s four-game winning streak came to a close on Monday, Sept. 19, after their 0-0 tie against Bryn Mawr College.
With the impact out-of-conference games can make later in the year, the Profs felt like they let a big opportunity for a win slip right through their hands; however, they are well aware that with their New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) games right around the corner, there is no time to dwell on it.
“I think, honestly, that it did feel like a loss,” said senior Nina Carlson. “We know that we are good enough to perform and knowing that an out-of-conference [game] can impact us in the end when we want to look at the NCAA tournament. It definitely gives us motivation to secure every game in the conference and leave no room for regret.”
“That’s a bad tie for us,” Head Coach Scott Leacott added. “We know it, but in this sport, you’re going to have those types of games. It was tough putting the ball in the net, but you can’t dwell on it.”
The Profs struggled to find an offensive rhythm, firing off just four shots in the first half and 12 total.
“In the first half we weren’t getting up on offense,” sophomore Jillian Jankowski said. “Then in the second half, everyone was just ramped up, and we were all over.”
Carlson believes that the Profs’ self-inflicted wounds were crucial in the lack of offense.
“It was more so our lack of commitment of being in our spots, which is what I think we’re working on a lot today at practice,” Carlson said. “I think that going into it, we are definitely going to have to talk more, and just kind of having awareness of where our teammates are on the field.”
Now with nine of their last ten games being against conference opponents, Coach Leacott wants the team to understand how different these games can be from their out-of-conference games.
“Everything is amped up a little bit, everything is a little bit more dire as far as getting things done, the pressures as far as out on the field everybody’s working 100%,” Coach Leacott said. “They’re all must-wins. If you want a good seed in the tournament, you have to win these games. It’s just a different season, different level. The teams know each other, they know how you play and everything gets a little bit harder.”
With all of that being said, Jankowski and the team are excited and looking forward to the opportunity to prove themselves to the conference.
“I’m so excited,” Jankowski said. “It’s obviously the best part of the season and the most important part of the season. The competition gets really intense and I feel like when you play better teams, it forces you to play better and challenge yourself, so I’m really excited to see what we do.”
The Profs will look to get a bounce-back win on Saturday, Sept. 24, as they open the NJAC portion of their season against the Kean University Cougars up in Union at 5 p.m.
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