On a historic day for the Quinnipiac women’s soccer program, the Bobcats rolled to a 3-0 win over Iona College (2-8) on Friday afternoon.
The contest marked the 20th anniversary of the team and players from the original squad were honored at halftime.
“It was definitely good that we won on such an important day,” freshman striker Lauren Peacock said. “I have a lot of respect for those players who came out for a team that hadn’t even been started yet.”
The win was the sixth in a row for the predominantly young squad, advancing the overall record to 6-1. The wins have been coming via pressure offense and a stout, senior leader in goal.
Speaking of his senior goaltender, head coach Dave Clarke said, “What she (Chloe Beizer) does is she talks and organizes. She’s a true captain out there.”
And the youngsters Beizer’s been leading haven’t been too shabby either. Led by the offensive exploits of freshman Peacock and sophomore Sarah Lawlor, the Bobcats outshot the Iona College Gaels 12-3.
Peacock’s goal turned out to be the game winner, 4:51 into the contest. Taking a beautiful feed from midfielder Justine Lombardi, Peacock slipped her team-leading fifth goal past the drawn out Iona keeper, giving QU a lead their defense would not relinquish.
“It was a great pass by Justine,” soft spoken Peacock said. “I just kind of had to poke it in.”
Lawlor would contribute some insurance in the second half in the form of her fourth goal on the young season. The sophomore forward scored at the 56:57 mark, ripping a shot past Iona goalie Krista Thorn.
“We didn’t play to our full capability but the bottom line is that we won,” said the Dublin, Ireland native.
Coach Clarke shared Lawlor’s opinion that his squad didn’t play to its full potential on Friday afternoon.
“We didn’t play particularly well today,” the eighth year coach said. “We have to work harder than we have in some of these early season games.”
Rounding out the scoring was freshman midfielder Johanne Walleck, who put the game away, scoring her first collegiate goal off a feed from Lawlor.
Asked if there was any added sentiment to winning on the 20th anniversary Clarke said matter-of-factly, “You want to win any game. It’s nice to think about it after the fact.”
The offensive onslaught fit the trend of the previous six games for the team. For the season, the Bobcats have scored 19 goals, while only allowing five from their opponents. QU has also outshot their opponents by an astounding count of 112-40.
“Teams are starting to scout us and realize that we’re actually a decent team,” Clarke said of the early season success.
The wins early on give the young team the confidence they will need come time for conference play. The squad that finished last year 9-7-2 (3-4-2 NEC) has a chance to improve on that mark this season.
In a non-conference game Sunday afternoon against Holy Cross, the Bobcats defeated the Crusaders 2-0 to earn their seventh straight victory.
Lombardi scored her first goal of the season just seven minutes into the match. Peacock crossed a ball from the right side and Lombardi scored in the lower left corner of the net for a 1-0 lead.
The Bobcats, who outshot the Crusaders 20-5 and had an 8-1 advantage in corner kicks, had numerous chances to increase their lead before the half, but were turned away.
Peacock added an insurance goal of her own in the 66th minute when she poked a loose ball into the goal off a corner kick for the final margian of 2-0.
Beizer registered her fifth shutout of the season, making one save.
The Bobcats visit Yale on Wednesday and NEC foe Central Connecticut State University on Sunday.
