East Carolina University
(18) Connecticut
Pirates Suffer 3-0 Defeat at 18th-Ranked UConn
October 08, 2015 | Soccer
STORRS, Conn. - The East Carolina women's soccer team suffered its second straight loss in a 3-0 setback at 18th-ranked UConn in American Athletic Conference action at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium Thursday evening.
Junior striker Lana Spitler led East Carolina (7-7-1, 2-3 AAC) with two shots, while senior goalkeeper Saundra Baron made four saves on the night.
The Huskies got on the attack immediately following the opening kickoff and took advantage of a costly mistake by the Pirates just over 90 seconds into the match. ECU's back line began to bring the ball forward, but a pass from the far side across the middle of the field was off the mark and intercepted by an aggressive Andrea Plucenik. She advanced the ball with two touches before hammering a shot approximately 25 yards out that went out of Baron's reach, off the inside of the crossbar and into the net to give the home team an early 1-0 lead after just 1:37 elapsed from the game clock.
Connecticut (11-2, 3-1 AAC) took a shot that struck the post in the 22nd minute, before an East Carolina clearance, but just two minutes later, a perfectly-timed through pass by Sarah Ribeiro from 50 yards out found the conference's leading goal scorer in 2014, Rachel Hill, who slipped past a back line that was up the field approximately five yards beyond the 18-yard line. Hill settled the pass and placed a shot to the right of a charging Baron and into the back of the net to extend the advantage to 2-0.
The Huskies took their two-goal lead into halftime, along with a 9-1 lead in shots and 4-0 advantage in corner kick chances.
ECU began the second half with a renewed sense of aggression in its offensive strategy, putting together a few close chances. Unable to find any rhythm, the Pirates were drawn into five offside calls in the match and could not manufacture a goal.
Connecticut broke the pressure with six minutes remaining on the clock and earned a throw-in deep in East Carolina territory. A cross off the throw was headed up into the air just 10 yards from the Pirate goal before landing right at the feet of a wide open Kim Urbanek, who settled the ball and drilled a shot to the left of Baron for the third and final score of the night.
UConn finished the night with a 14-6 lead in total shots and held ECU without a corner kick - the first opponent to accomplish the feat this season.
East Carolina will travel to Philadelphia, Pa., for its next match on Sunday, Oct. 11 at Temple. Opening kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m., at Ambler Soccer Field.
