Recap: Pirates lose in OT to St. John's, 2-1

Date: March 7, 2021

By: Madison Fruchter

Seton Hall Athletics

The Pirates came off of a tough match in our nation’s capital, suffering a scoreless loss against Georgetown last Thursday. Despite the lack of offensive production, Grace Gordon faced 17 shots between the pipes, allowing only four to slip past and saving an additional three. Today’s opponents approached this matchup fired up from their overtime win against Villanova last Thursday retaining their undefeated season title.

 

Seton Hall entered the game with vengeance after their loss and heavily attacked the Red Storm defense early in the first half. However, St. John’s defensive backs proved effective in keeping the Pirates from crowding the box; after a quick attempt on offense, the Red Storm largely forced the Pirates to play defense throughout the entire first half. Emily Caza was a standout defender throughout the first 10 minutes of the half, making key stops to prevent a Red Storm goal, as well as Abbie Roberts who cleared multiple foul kicks from the box throughout the first.

 

Gordon made an impressive left foot save on a Red Storm corner kick, which gave the Pirates some well needed energy to press on offense. A free kick by Laura Hooper in the 30^th minute of the half surged past a wall of defenders and bounced into the Red Storm goal to finally put the Pirates on the board. A chip by Roberts set Hooper up for the 35-foot shot that bounced off the top bar off the goal after soaring over a sea of St. John’s defenders.

End of Regulation | Seton Hall 1, St. John's 1

We head to overtime here in Queens.#HALLin

— Seton Hall Women's Soccer (@SHUWSOC) March 7, 2021

Though the Pirates were very much alive on offense from that point on, Maia Cabrera was able to replicate Hooper’s previous shot and put St. John’s on the board in the 43^rd minute of the first half. This pair of long-range goals closed off the end of the half with St. John’s leading Seton Hall four shots to two.

 

St. John’s opened up the half with much offensive pressure. Zsani Kajan had a golden opportunity to tack on another goal for the Red Storm in the first 10 minutes of the second half but Gordon answered the call with a clutch block, slapping Kajan’s head-on shot up and over the bar.

 

Much like the first half, the Pirates’ defense found themselves on their toes throughout most of the second, allowing the Red Storm to infiltrate the box more so than before. Things became increasingly physical between these two rivals, with a yellow card coming out in the 62^nd minute on Frederique St.-Jean and another on Hooper in the 87^th minute. A scoreless second half brought this game into overtime where the St. John’s offense was able to charge into the box multiple times before Kajan’s chip into an open goal sealed the Pirates’ fate.

 

Though the Pirates held top scorer Kajan down all afternoon, she was able to convert when the Red Storm needed it most, giving them their fifth straight win of the season. The Pirates leave Queens, N. Y. with just four shots over all compared to St. John’s 12, however Gordon played an essential role in the Pirates’ performance today by making key saves to hold the Red Storm at an arm’s length. The Pirates are now 1-2 and host Providence on March 11 at 6:00 p.m., hopeful for a much-needed conference win.

Madison Fruchter can be reached at madison.fruchter@student.shu.edu.

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