The University of Richmond women’s soccer team fell 1-0 to the University of Delaware at home Sept. 1 in what was the Blue Hens’ first win and the Spiders’ first loss on the season.
Opening with possession, UD found immediate success building out of its deep backfield to attack quickly down the left side. By the sixth minute, this strategy had already produced two corner kicks for the Blue Hens, though each were swiftly dealt with by the Spiders’ defense.
The contest evolved into a defensive grind as UR clamped down on the Blue Hens’ smooth midfield transitions and put pressure on their deep back line. Despite blunting UD’s attack however, the Spiders could not quite break through the Blue Hens’ unyielding defensive setup.
As the half closed, it was UD that began stringing together better scoring opportunities. Graduate goalkeeper McKenna DalFonso twice outraced UD forwards on sliding through-ball saves, while senior defender Elle Dziadzio made a sterling inside-the-box tackle to clear away a deep UD run in the last play of the half.
Opening second-half play, the Blue Hens struggled to retain momentum as both teams traded harmless shots from distance in the face of suffocating defensive efforts. UD seemed poised to leverage this deadlock after being granted a penalty in the 61st minute, but this shot, too, was rattled wide off the crossbar.
Just five minutes later, the Blue Hens would find the lone goal of the match to seal their first victory. Though DalFonso saved the initial low, right-side strike, the rebound was sent well out of reach into the far netting. From that point, UD was content to defend its lead with a five-player back line, allowing the minutes to tick away from the Spiders.
As the final twenty minutes elapsed, the Spiders persisted in the attacking third of the field with an aggressively high coverage. Sophomore defender Gwen Howell anchored UR’s backfield along with DalFonso, making several key plays to keep the deficit at just one.
Although several passes found their way into the Blue Hens’ 18-yard box, none connected with a Spider for a clear shot, and time ran out on UR’s comeback bid.
“I think the whole game was even, but ultimately it came down to we just didn’t have enough quality in that final third,” UR Head Coach Adam Denton said following the loss. “Whoever was going to get that first goal in this game could then possess it…we just had to chase it.”
UR dropped to 2-1-1 with the loss after earlier wins against Longwood University on Aug. 22 and Howard University on Aug. 25. In improving to 1-4-1, the Blue Hens became the first team to shut out the Spiders this season. Ironically, this match was the first of the season to see the Spiders put more shots on frame than their opponents.
The Spiders will next travel to the College of William & Mary for their matchup at 7 p.m. Sept. 5.
Contact sports writer Scott Valentine at scott.valentine@richmond.edu.
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