The Rams were poised to upset the
17th-ranked Delaware Blue Hens as they
took a 4-1 advantage when freshman
Merel Kroon (Amstelveen, The Netherlands/
Keizer Karel College) notched her
second goal of the afternoon and fifth of
the season.
The goal appeared to ice the match
with 21:17 remaining in regulation, but
the lead couldn’t withstand Delaware’s
offensive rally late in the second half, as
VCU fell 5-4 in double overtime Sunday
at Cary Street Field.
Scoring came early and often for VCU in
the first half, beginning with Kroon’s first
goal at the 5:50 mark, off a tip-in assisted
by fellow Dutch freshman Flore van Dessel
(Oisterwijk, The Netherlands/Odulphus
Lyceum).
Casey Howard followed with a backhand
flip from the front of the cage to
even the score for Delaware with her
seventh goal of the season.
As the minutes were ticking off the
clock, the pace slowed, and each team
appeared content to go to halftime with
the score knotted at one apiece. The Rams,
though, found a late offensive spark in the
final seven minutes of the period.
Senior Emily Guerra (Yorktown/Seton
Hall) provided the second goal as Kroon
again asserted herself in the scoring mix,
providing the centering assist.
Rachel Krumm (Norfolk/Granby)
extended the advantage to 3-1 off a corner
penalty shot, VCU’s only successful one
of the match, with 2:23 remaining in
the half.
Megan Allen relieved goalkeeper Nikki
Rhoades, who made just one save, in the
second half for the Blue Hens. Allen,
though, allowed the Rams to jump to
the 4-1 lead before the Blue Hens could
muster more offense.
After looking sharp for most of the
game, the defense and senior goalkeeper
Brittany LoVullo (Williamsville, N.Y./Williamsville
North) struggled for VCU in
the waning minutes.
Delaware, despite having its back
against the wall on the road, took assault
on the Rams’ three-goal advantage.
Howard tallied another goal, followed
by consecutive goals from Michelle Drummonds
– all in less than 10 minutes – to
force overtime.
LoVullo was replaced in favor of junior
Laura Baker (Kent, England/Langley Park)
to start the first overtime period. Baker’s
presence was quickly felt as she made
four saves in the first overtime.
Delaware wasted no time scoring after
the five-minute break coming into the
second overtime. Amanda Warrington
assisted Tori Karsten’s game-winning goal
from the left corner. The goal completed
the Blue Hens’ comeback victory, 5-4, just
39 seconds into the second sudden-death
overtime.
With the loss, the Rams drop to 4-4
on the season and 1-1 in CAA play. They
return to the field this Friday to take on
the Hofstra Pride in Hempstead, N.Y.