Pomona-Pitzer hat-trick leads to 3-1 Panthers loss
ORANGE, Calif. – Since defeating Pomona-Pitzer in the conference championship match a season ago, the Chapman University women's soccer team has twice failed to repeat their success, dropping a 3-1 decision to the Sagehens on Wednesday at Wilson Field. Sagehens M Allie Tao collected her first hat-trick of the season, providing more than enough offense to earn her team the season sweep of the Panthers.
With the loss, third place Chapman (9-7-1 overall, 6-5 SCIAC) saw their lead over Redlands and Claremont-M-S shortened as the three teams vie for a playoff spot with only three matches remaining in the regular season. Meanwhile, second place Pomona-Pitzer (11-2-1 overall, 9-2 SCIAC) strengthened their position in the standings as they effort towards the top spot in the conference, currently held by Cal Lutheran
The match opened with a flurry of high percentage shots, but Pomona-Pitzer was the only one able to capitalize on the early opportunities. In the 13th minute, Tao netted the first of her three goals from 20 yards out off an assist from sophomore M Julia Dohner.
Just 11 minutes later, Tao replicated her first goal by sinking a shot into the corner of the net, just past the fingers of junior GK Marissa Fehrman. The goal, scored in the 24th minute, was the second of three to get by Fehrman on the afternoon. The goal keeper did not make any saves in the 69 minutes and 55 seconds she played before giving way to fellow GK Kristin Kleinow, who made two saves in the final 20 minutes.
Not content entering halftime with a two goal deficit, Chapman took one back in the 42nd minute as junior M Olivia Do put a header into the net off a remarkable assist from sophomore M Haley Fedden. It was the second assist on the season for Fedden, whose free kick came from more than 40 yards away.
Tao continued her assault on the Chapman defense just three minutes into the second half when she netted her third and final goal of the match, giving the Sagehens a 3-1 advantage. With three goals on the day, Tao came one goal shy of matching her season total (4).
Chapman outshot the Sagehens by a final tally of 16-7, but Pomona-Pitzer GK Corey Goelz made five key saves, including two late tries, to deliver the loss to the Panthers.
The Panthers will be back in action on Saturday as they head to Occidental to take on the Tigers at 1 p.m. The regular season will wrap up with two games next week, the first on the road at Cal Lutheran on Wednesday followed by a showdown with La Verne at Wilson Field on Saturday, Nov. 2.
Boxscore: http://www.chapmanathletics.com/sports/wsoc/2013-14/boxscores/20131023_b4v0.xml
by Ryan Cavinder
Sports Information Assistant
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