The perfect season may be over but the women’s soccer team is still undefeated. The Knights beat Alfred University 2-0 and Houghton College 1-0 on Sept. 12 and Saturday Sept. 13, respectively, and played the Rochester Institute of Technology to a 2-2 draw on Tuesday Sept. 16. “Alfred is in a little bit of a rebuilding phase,” head coach Nate Wiley said. “They really sat in against us. They made a concerted effort to not go forward and we had the ball for 95 percent of the game.” As has been the case all season, the Knights' defense was the key to their victory. Geneseo did not allow a single shot from Alfred in the entire game.
“Our possession [is] … really the main proponent of our defense,” Wiley said. “We just don't allow the other team to have the ball much.”
Offensively, senior forward Jori Semrau was the spark over the weekend. She tallied two goals and an assist in the three games this past week.
“She’s one of the many players on our team that [has] really learned this system well and understands how to play within it,” Wiley said. So far this season, Semrau has three assists and three goals, two of which were game-winners. Wiley said that Semrau is playing better this year largely because of her dedication.
“She made an effort to be more fit coming in and it’s her senior year, so that was a motivating factor for her,” he said.
Although the Knights played very well in their weekend games, their game against RIT was a bit of a struggle. The Tigers came out and scored quickly, going up 1-0 in the fourth minute. Geneseo was down 2-1 at halftime but freshman back Leah Greene hit the back of the net to tie it in the 74th minute.
This was the first game of the season that Geneseo didn’t win. Luckily, the 17th ranked Knights took several things from the draw.
“I’m not disappointed, I’m happy about certain things with that game,” Wiley said. “It showed the kind of character that we have … we were down twice and both times we were able to come back and at least level the game.”
RIT is not the last good team Geneseo will face. Their toughest weekend will be Oct. 3-4 when the team plays at SUNY New Paltz and at reigning SUNYAC champion SUNY Oneonta. “[We] need to figure out how to win those games,” Wiley said.
The Knights will play St. Lawrence University on Saturday Sept. 20. Although the Saints' record may not reflect it, Wiley thinks they are on the same level as RIT.
“They’re a very strong team. They play in one of the top leagues in the entire country,” he said. “Their record may not be outstanding, but they’re a very good team. It’s going to be a battle for us.”
St. Lawrence is the last game for Geneseo before SUNYAC play begins. The Knights are currently the top-ranked team in the conference, but Wiley is not worried about that getting to his team.
“The results will take care of themselves if we play the way that we know we can play,” he said.