The long, rollercoaster of a season has come to a sudden halt for the Geneseo women’s soccer team following a 2-1 loss at the hands of SUNY Oswego in the SUNYAC Tournament quarterfinals. Finishing the season with a record of 11-5-1, this is the first time in the past two seasons that the women have not made it past the SUNYAC quarterfinals.
All the signs pointed to the Knights having the advantage in this second matchup between the two teams. Geneseo came out on top in their matchup two weeks ago with a 2-1 win. As the third seed for the playoffs, the Knights were awarded home field advantage—where they had been an impressive 5-1 throughout the regular season.
Although the Knights outshot SUNY Oswego 11-8, it was clear that there was a lack of offensive production, which was the Knights’ downfall.
“We played a good game, but we were unable to get a strong attack going,” junior midfielder Emily Green said. “We controlled the ball most of the game, but we didn't create enough opportunities for ourselves.”
The Knights’ lack of an attack has been their Achilles’ heel all season long. It has been the strong defense—not offense—that has carried them up to this point. Although the end result was clearly not what the women had hoped for, many players noted that it was still a fairly successful season overall.
“I believe the season was successful but again, our offense needs to improve. We need to be more of a threat with that,” freshman keeper Emily Janiszewski said. “We were happy with how hard we worked and we can't wait to come back for next season.”
With a roster that has only five seniors, it appears that the women will retain most of the same players, which should give them a chance to really form a strong chemistry and repertoire together.
“The more we play together, the better a team we become. We were able to work with some new players and formations and make positive changes to the way we play,” Green said. “Our returning players continue to improve and although we will suffer a huge loss from our graduating seniors, I feel we set ourselves up to be a strong team next season.”
Of course, the end of a season means the end of a career for the senior class. “I am very thankful that I was able to spend the last four years of my soccer career here at Geneseo,” senior forward Kelsey Raschke said. “It has been incredible to be a part of the team and to play with some of my best friends.”