Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG.
Katie Teleky ’13 and freshman Audrey Allen ’16 each scored a pair of goals and eight different players earned at least one point as Swarthmore outslugged Richard Stockton 7-5 in a high-scoring affair on Thursday afternoon.
With the victory, the Garnet improved to 3-0 in the young season and is off to its best start since 2006 when the team also began 3-0 and won five of its first six games.
After playing a pair of low-scoring matches at the Drew Fall Festival last weekend, Swarthmore showed off its deep and diverse attack against the Ospreys and reached the seven goal mark for just the third time in the last six years.
The Garnet went behind on an early goal for the second game in a row as Susie Balidemaj scored off her own rebound to put the homestanders in front 12 minutes in, but the lead lasted all of six minutes as Erin Gluck ’16 and Allen, who were brilliant in the attack all game long, connected to level the contest. Gluck, having nearly created a goal minutes earlier on a well-placed cross, again found space down the right flank and her pass to the stroke was tapped in by Allen for her first collegiate goal.
Sophia Agathis ’13 gave the Garnet its first lead with 3:30 to play before the intermission on a penalty corner but that lead was quickly erased as well. Just over a minute later, Stockton answered on a penalty corner of their own to knot the contest at two in the waning moments of the first half.
But it took Swarthmore only 17 seconds to regain the advantage as Gluck again wreaked havoc in front of the Osprey cage. On the restart, Agathis, Maegan Hearney ’15 and Gluck worked the ball down the center with Hearney touching through to Gluck alone on the doorstep to send the Garnet into the break with a one goal advantage.
Neither team was close to finished as Richard Stockton again brought the match to stalemate ten minutes into the second half with another penalty corner goal. Swarthmore responded with a pair of goals just 41 seconds apart as first Allen, on a scramble out front, and then Teleky, sent in on target on a cutting ball to make the score 5-3.
The resilient Ospreys came right back with a pair of goals 4:30 apart on loose balls out in front to level the contest for a fourth time.
Having exchanged blows for the first 58 minutes, the Garnet scored the final two goals of the game to avenge last year’s 4-3 defeat to Stockton. Again, the first response came quickly after the Stockton equalizer. A mere 25 seconds after the game was evened 5-5, Nia Jones ’14 fed a pass to the stroke mark for Teleky who was collected with her finish and Swarthmore led 6-5.
With less than a minute to go and the Osprey net empty, the duo connected again as Teleky sent Jones in alone on a break to make the final score 7-5.
Reigning Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week Gabby Capone ’14 made six saves in net for the Garnet. Swarthmore concludes its season-opening four game road trip with a 12:00 p.m. start at Widener on Saturday.
This story was originally published by Swarthmore Athletics.
