CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – MIT sophomore Olivia Struckman (Scottsdale, Ariz.) and freshman Allie Hrabchak (Princeton, N.J.) each scored a pair of goals in the first half to sink the Lesley University women's soccer team 4-1 in non-conference action this evening at Edward Field. The win improves the Engineers to 2-2-0 on the season while the Lynx fall to 2-3-0 with the loss.
Lesley freshman McKenna Straube (Junction City, Ore.) added the only tally for the hosts with her first collegiate goal in the second half of play.
Struckman put the Engineers on the board early on in the sixth minute. Freshman Amy Apostol (Los Gatos, Calif.) dribbled up the middle of the field and delivered a lead pass to the foot of Struckman, who then took a touch and fired a shot past the charging Jackie Berard (Coventry, R.I.) into the back of the net for her first marker of the season. Struckman added her second goal on a nearly identical play as she received a pass down the right side from junior Kathleen Chen (Chappaque, N.Y.) and drove a right footed blast inside the far post to put the guests up 2-0 after 19 minutes.
Hrabchak added to the MIT offense at 35:19 when she headed home a cross from freshman Lucy Halperin (Seattle, Wash.) before adding her second tally just three minutes later. Junior Annelise Steele (Greenwich, Conn.) was credited with the assist.
The Lynx had a pair of opportunities to get on the board in the middle of the first half. Freshman Samantha Bessey (Algonquin, Ill.) settled a pass from junior Samantha Rapant (Pittsfield, Mass.) at the top of the box, but her drive finished just wide of the right post. One minute later it was Rapant who nearly put one in the net when she one-timed a bouncing ball in the box, but her right-footed attempt also went wide of the cage.
Straube finally broke through for the Lynx in the 69th minute when she finished a bouncing ball on the heels of a Lesley corner kick off the foot of fellow first year Kai Morehead (Oxnard, Calif.).
The Lynx outshot the Engineers 6-4 in the second half, though MIT held a slim 11-10 edge in that department for the match.
Berard suffered the loss for the Lynx as she made one save in the first half of play before giving way to sophomore Lilly Donovan (Newburyport, Mass.) in the second. Donovan made a pair of saves, including a terrific diving stop to her right in the 83rd minute.
MIT's Lauren Ullmann (Princeton, N.J.) earned the win while playing the first 65:40 while junior Hannah Zlotnick (Rochester, N.Y.) registered the final 24:20 of action, making one save in relief.
The Lynx continue their three-match home stand on Tuesday when they host Simmons College in another non-conference bout at 8:00p. The Engineers will also be in non-conference action on Tuesday when they travel to Roger Williams University at 4:00p.
