MONTCLAIR – The Montclair State women’s soccer team dominated the field today as they swept their opponents Rutgers-Newark during the homecoming game. Despite the box score, the Scarlet Raiders fought back hard in every minute and proved to be a match worth seeing.
While the game went scoreless for twenty minutes, the Raiders made sure to come in aggressive at the start. After forward Eliza Haghighi fouled more than once, the referee made an obvious point to call her out, letting her know that it was her second.
The ball moved up and down the field many times, with failed shots on both ends. Montclair State showed their hustle with numerous steals and attempted goals. From the strength of Kira Henderson to the leadership of Sophia Orellana, the entire team showcased a strong sense of communication and teamwork. It truly paid off in the twenty-first minute when star forward Isabell Kronow scored a goal from the low left, assisted by senior midfielder Shannon Mullins.
The first yellow card was handed out to Rutgers-Newark’s Genesis Sarango only a mere minute later. She also heard a lot of scolding from the referee, who struggled to stay out of the players’ way at times. Fans were heard in the stands shouting for him to move out of the way, to which he eventually obliged.
The second goal of the first half was made by Kronow as well, this time on her own. After a failed shot that was caught by Raiders’ goalkeeper Maura Chawner, she hopped right on over to score from the low center.
“I attribute that success to my teammates,” Kronow stated. “Without the good passes I’m getting, without people being in the box when I cross it, I wouldn’t be able to get those goals.”
That teamwork made the Red Hawks finish the first half up 2-0, with only a stronger battle to fight in the second half.
The next began with a lot of fan discourse in the stands. As the players from both teams hustled on the field, they tripped over each other left and right – something bound to happen in such an intense sport. However, one Raiders fan argued very loudly against it and garnered negative reactions from the Red Hawk side.
“Come on!” he shouted. “She’s twice as big as me.”
“Are you kidding me?” a Montclair parent argued back while swearing in between. “She’s not twice as big as you!”
The game’s intensity only surged as time went on. After many substitutions on both ends, the Raiders fouled a few more times before finding more chances to shoot for the goal. Many times they came close, but the ball was always just a bit off.
The Red Hawks earned more yellow cards this half. First on sophomore utility player Carly Guzzardo at the 60th minute and then on Emma Edwards, a sophomore with the same title.
With less than ten minutes left in the game, the fans still argued out loud, nearly becoming a distraction for the players on the field. The same fan from Rutgers-Newark continued to insist that the women of Montclair State played dirty, and made sure everyone heard him.
Despite the distraction, the women pushed through to the end. After an assist by Kronow, freshman forward Kaylee Lauber scored Montclair State’s third goal of the game from the high right, leaving the home team with 3-0. No one scored for the last few minutes, and the Red Hawks won their second NJAC match of the season.
“We know the conference games especially are very competitive,” head coach Patrick Naughter said post-game. “They’re a really hard-working team, Rutgers-Newark. I think they’re really good, and they’re gonna win some games in the conference. So we knew it wasn’t going to be easy. I thought we played pretty well.”
Naughter is one of the few coaches who doesn’t like to plan too far ahead into the future.
“It’s just one game at a time,” he stated after being asked for his game plan for the next match. “We’re just locked in on Rutgers-Newark. Because if you look ahead, that’s where you get caught, so our whole goal was to make that a big game and we did our part.”
The Red Hawks face The College of New Jersey in Ewing next Wednesday, October 7 at 6 p.m.
