Women’s soccer regular season review
By Craig Epstein | Published Nov. 10, 2016
After the close of the regular season, the Kean University Women’s soccer team advanced to the semifinals of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) where they fell to The College of New Jersey with a score of 4-0.
But before reaching the NJAC playoff tournament, the team battled through the season, resulting in a record of 11-7.
After starting the year at 1-3, the team managed to rattle off two wins in a row to get back to .500. One of their more notable wins came at the expense of Franklin & Marshall. Going into double overtime the game was tied at 1-1. It wasn’t until the 109th minute that Kean took advantage with a corner kick that led to the game-winning goal scored by midfielder Jordyn Bronsky.
After getting to 3-3, Kean quickly fell back to a game under with a 3-1 loss to Stockton University. After the loss to the Ospreys, the Cougars pulled off back-to-back shut-out victories against the College of Staten Island and Rutgers-Newark to improve to 5-4. Their shutout streak came to an end by rival Montclair State University in a 3-1 loss, dropping Kean’s record back down to .500.
Kean finished the regular season on a positive note. After a 2-0 loss to Rowan University, Kean won six of the eight games played in Oct. to end the regular season at 11-7. They beat the likes of John Jay College, William Paterson University, New Jersey City University, Rutgers-Camden, St. Joseph’s College-L.I., and Ramapo College.
Their two losses during this streak came at the hands of Rowan University and The College of New Jersey.
Kean’s most notable win during this streak was the defeat of John Jay College by a whopping score of 8-0. Eight different Cougars scored that day, including freshmen Taylor Hueston and Lexy Monroy, recording their first ever collegiate goals.
Midfielder Taylor Hueston provided her thoughts of the team’s performance during the regular season and what she hoped to accomplish going forward. The Metuchen, New Jersey native had much to say.
“We’ve been here since August 19th, we put in eight days of pre-season which consisted of three practices a day and fitness at 7 a.m.,” Heuston said. “These types of things really prepared us for what was to come during the season.”
She went on to say more about the impact the seniors had on the team this season. They’ve lead the squad to play tough and hard against good teams.
“We’re losing 5 great seniors that bring aggression, talent, hard work, and motivation to our team and they all leave an impact in a lot different ways,” Heuston said. “Having them leave our team leaves a huge dent, but we’re an all-around heavy hitting team and I think that we’ll still be solid in the spring and next year.”
Coach Brian Doherty contributed a reflection of the regular season.
“I think the regular season has gone pretty well,” Doherty said. “There were a couple of games we lost that I think we could have won, but I am very happy with the team’s progression throughout the season.”
Thinking towards the postseason, Coach Doherty had more to contribute about his team.
“Going forward we hope to continue to progress and play our best soccer in the NJAC, NCAA, and/or the ECAC tournament,” Doherty said.
After going through a regular season that consisted of its ups and downs, the Kean Women’s Soccer Team looks to get hot at the right time. The team will go on to play in the Eastern College Athletic Conference Tournament, with their first game on Nov. 12.
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