Pirates Fight Back Late to Rescue A Point at St. John’s, Tie 2-2

Published: Sunday, September 29, 2024

by Tommy Kvaloe

QUEENS, N.Y. - The Seton Hall Pirates came back from being down two to get a point against St. John’s in an intense 2-2 draw. Both Olivia Beauvois and Megan Twomey scored their first career goals within the last half-hour to tie it up. In their second matchup of Big East play, the crucial point away from home was much-needed for the Pirates’ morale. 

Both teams stayed more in the midfield coming out of the gates, neither squad wanting to risk giving up any big chances on goal to start the game. In just the first 10 minutes there were four fouls, three by the Johnnies and one by the Pirates. Natalie Tavana was the culprit for the only shot on goal, which was saved by St. John’s goalie Kayla Bower.  

But when the clock hit 18:44, the deadlock was broken by St. John’s Jailene DeJesus, who slotted the ball in the bottom left corner with her right foot. It was a clinical finish by the senior with her first of two goals in the afternoon. Her second came just seven minutes later with a powerful strike into the top center of the goal, giving Pirates’ goalkeeper Anna Prawer no time to react.  

The Hall showed promise in the last 20 minutes of the half by putting up four shots. Megan Twomey came close 30 seconds before the intermission, trying to force one into the bottom left corner. But she was denied by Bower, who came up with her third save of the first half.    

In contrast to the first half, the Pirates came out firing to start the second, bolstering five unanswered shots within the first 11 minutes of play. This attacking force was spearheaded by Chiara Pucci and Tavana, each with two, respectively. Much to their dismay, none of the shots managed to find the back of the net. The irritation started showing, as Olivia Beauvois picked up a yellow card for unsportsmanlike conduct.        

Pressure continued building on the Red Storm’s backline when captain Pucci sent a magical shot towards the top right corner of the goal. The shot was saved by substitute goalie Malene Nielsen but then resulted in a Seton Hall corner. After the corner was cleared, Seton Hall continued attacking down the right-hand flank. A cross was soon sent in towards Beauvois, who was able to find the top center at the 63:44 mark to make it a one-goal game. 

With the Pirates now desperately searching for an equalizer, the chances for one started to look bleaker the more the clock ticked down. That was until they got a corner with five minutes left on the clock. Tavana sent it in, and Twomey placed the ball right into the middle of the frame with enough strength to find the back of the net. The whistle blew a few minutes later, and the game officially ended in a thrilling 2-2 draw.  

Seton Hall is now 3-6-3 overall and 0-1-2 in conference play so far. They will look to end this five-game winless streak when they go back home to Owen T. Carroll Field this coming Sunday when they host Providence. You can follow the game live at 1 p.m. on WSOU.net, with Jack Pine and AJ Rayer on the call.  

Tommy Kvaloe can be reached at thomas.kval@student.shu.edu

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