Women’s Soccer Rallies Against VCU for a 4-1 Victory

Loyola women’s soccer defeated Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) 4-1 Oct. 19 in an aggressive match. Fourth-year forward Molly Pistorius, redshirt second-year forward Emily Rossi and third-year forward Jadyn Harris scored goals for Loyola. Rams fourth-year midfielder Y-Van Nguyen scored the lone goal for VCU. 

The match began with a shot from Rams’ fourth-year midfielder Keira Connolly which sailed over the heads of defenders and landed in redshirt second-year goalkeeper Allison Deardorff’s arms. 

A foul on third-year midfielder Maggie Schmidt allowed a free kick to Rams’ redshirt third-year forward Jensyn Lins, but a header by graduate midfielder and forward Mia Lanni sent the ball out of bounds. 

Back-to-back shots in the sixth minute by Rams’ third-year forward Jazmin Jackson were blocked by Deardorff, and Schmidt’s shot in the next minute soared over the crossbar. A VCU corner was awarded in the eighth minute, and the shot was headed away by first-year defender Abby Sudkamp. 

A foul on Pistorius allowed for a shot by Rams’ fourth-year forward Kendyl Sarver which Deardoff caught on a dive. In the 14th minute, VCU was awarded three consecutive corners — the first was blocked by Deardorff, the second was headed out by Sudkamp and the third was kicked away by Lanni. 

Four minutes later, the Ramblers received a corner which was headed to the ground by Sudkamp, before being kicked out by a Rams defender. A shot by Hevey was saved by Rams’ third-year goalkeeper Mia Pongratz. Harris and Rams’ first-year forward Isabelle Franklin each received fouls in the 21st minute. 

A corner for Loyola was kicked away by Pistorius, and after a rough scramble for the ball, the Ramblers got called on a team foul, awarding Nguyen a penalty kick in the 25th minute, which rolled to the right of Deardorff, putting the Rams up to a 1-0 lead. 

In the next minute, Connolly got called on a foul, awarding Rossi a free kick which floated into the left lower corner of the net, quickly bringing the match to a 1-1 draw. 

Nguyen and Connolly both took shots, but both were scooped up by Deardorff. In the 33rd minute, fourth-year midfielder and forward Angelina Perritano’s shot arced high on the goal but was caught by Pongratz. 

A shot by Harris was blocked by Pongratz and a foul on second-year midfielder Lydia Case gave possession to the Rams. In the 41st minute, VCU’s first-year midfielder and forward Jess Gotshall took a shot to the right corner of the goal, but it was blocked by Deardroff. 

Second-year midfielder and forward Alexandra Gib’s shot went over the heads of VCU defenders, but the ball was popped over to the crossbar by Pongratz in the 43rd minute, awarding a corner to Loyola. The pass by Rossi was headed by fourth-year forward and midfielder Ella Skelton and kicked out by Rams’ first-year midfielder Mina Stevens to end the half. 

The second half started with a shot by Hevey which was snagged by Pongratz, but Pistorius knocked into Pongratz, and the ball dropped. Pistorius’ subsequent shot was caught by Pongratz and Pistorius received a foul. 

In the 49th minute, Pistorius’ kick popped up into the air, and when it came down, Rossi buried the ball into the left corner of the net, giving the Ramblers a 2-1 lead. A minute later, both teams received offsides calls, as well as fouls on Case and Rams’ fourth-year defender Jordyn Hall. 

In the 58th minute, Skelton’s shot veered right of the goal. In the same minute, VCU was awarded a corner which was kicked out of bounds by Sudkamp. Rams’ third-year midfielder Vivian Vendt attempted a shot, but it was snagged by Deardorff. A shot by Pistorius soared over the crossbar in the 64th minute. 

Two minutes later, Loyola was awarded a corner, but Rossi’s kick was pushed out of the goal by Pongratz. A foul on Hevey in the 67th minute gave the ball over to VCU, but the Ramblers were quick to steal it back and a following shot by Case was batted away by Pongratz. 

Sarver, Hall and Jackson were called on consecutive fouls for VCU, allowing Case to take a shot which bounced off the crossbar, and Hevey’s subsequent shot was picked up by Pongratz. In the 76th minute, a shot by Rams’ third-year defender Ishpreen Marwah was saved by Deardorff.

In the 79th minute, Jackson received a yellow card for unsporting after knocking down Deardorff by the goal. A minute later, a pass from Perritano arced into the air and was headed into the back of the net by Pistorius, extending the Ramblers lead to 3-1. 

Following a Rams corner caught by Deardorff, Marwah ran into Lanni and knocked her to the ground. Lanni was led off the field after being checked by a trainer, and no foul was called, returning the ball into VCU possession. 

In the 85th minute, Harris stole the ball from the Rams and ran down field. Pongratz came up to meet her but slipped, and Harris tapped the ball into the bottom right of the goal, capping off the match and giving the Ramblers a 4-1 victory. 

Head coach Jon Sandoval said it was important to have this level of performance when playing at home.

“You still have to take care of the ones at home,” Sandoval said. “Home ones are the ones that you’re expected to win. So it was really important that we came out and had the performance that we did.”

The Ramblers play their last game at Hoyne Field and will honor their seniors Oct. 23 against the University of Rhode Island. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.