In its final nonconference matchup before a string of Big Ten games, Northwestern women’s soccer battled Harvard to a 1-1 draw Sunday afternoon in Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.
Coach Michael Moynihan looked to challenge his squad ahead of climactic conference competitions, taking on several ACC foes and an Ivy League opponent he said belongs among the nation’s top-25 teams.
“There’s nothing like the gauntlet,” he said. “We do our best to prepare for it.”
Although the Crimson (4-0-3, 0-0 Ivy League) scored just five minutes into the match, the Wildcats (5-3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) relentlessly fought back to tie the game, with freshman forward Kennedy Roesch finding the back of the net with her team-high fourth goal of the season in the 78th minute.
Harvard leaped ahead early when freshman forward Lauren Muniz found senior midfielder Josefine Hasbo in the box. Hasbo volleyed the ball off her right foot and past the ’Cats’ junior goalkeeper Reiley Fitzpatrick to put the Crimson up 1-0.
NU’s defense had difficulties with the Harvard attack, but Fitzpatrick’s diving save 29 minutes in kept the game within one goal. Moynihan said the Crimson possessed a tactical advantage in the game’s opening phase, but the ’Cats remained undeterred.
“We know this is a group that works really hard and loves each other,” Moynihan said. “I think there’s another level to our mental toughness.”
The ’Cats became more offensively efficient as the first half progressed.
Despite Norkett’s miss, NU kept up its attacking pressure and continued its season-long trend of outshooting its opponents, taking 18 shots to the Crimson’s seven.
“Once we made a few tweaks and the effort was there, the chances were there — we just needed one more (goal),” Moynihan said.
Harvard goalkeeper Rhiannon Stewart stood stout in net, making eight pivotal saves for the visitors. The ’Cats onslaught continued, and Roesch broke through in the 78th minute after flicking a through ball from senior midfielder Kelsey Kwon over Stewart’s head to tie the game.
The goal represented Roesch’s successful adjustment from the ECNL level straight to the high-major collegiate game. The freshman has scored four goals in nine matches for NU.
Moynihan said Roesch suffered from a preseason illness but has quickly found her form as the ’Cats’ first-rate finisher, filling the lofty shoes of last season’s leading scorer, Ella Hase, who transferred to Duke last winter.
“(Roesch) went the full 90 today and scored at the end, so clearly there was enough juice for her, and that was good to see,” Moynihan said. “She’s making great progress.”
In its previous nonconference matchups, NU secured three clean sheets on its home turf — including an upset of then-No. 21 Virginia Tech — and went 2-2 on the road.
After falling to Purdue Thursday, the ’Cats will continue their conference slate Thursday at No. 12 Penn State — a perennial Big Ten contender they’ve only beaten once before on the road. Moynihan is eager to make the trip to State College.
“Last year, they kind of stole a tie from us, where we completely outplayed them and outshot them by a huge margin,” Moynihan said. “We look forward to the challenge, and our expectation is to win.”
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