For head coach Tracey Leone, the game was a repeat of the team’s Oct. 16 loss to first place College of William & Mary University. In that game, the Huskies started tentatively before settling down in the second-half.
“We came out Friday and we seemed very uptight but also lacked a lot of urgency in the first half,” Leone said. “They came out hungry and excited and we just lacked focus. It was really similar to the William & Mary game, it’s unfortunate that we didn’t bring that experience to this game. We lost the ball a lot in the middle of the field and made a lot of unforced errors.”
In Sunday’s match against Georgia State, Northeastern overcame a one-goal deficit twice before securing the win. The team found themselves down 1-0 at the 23rd minute but Napoli equalized the match within 10 minutes when she netted a feed from senior midfielder Kirby Anderson. The goal marked Napoli’s team-leading 10th goal of the season.
Georgia State regained the lead in the second half, but sophomore midfielder Hannah O’Donnell put Northeastern back in it with her first goal of the season and junior forward Greta Samuelsdottir got the Huskies the lead after a battle in front of the net to bring the match to its final 3-2 score.
“On Sunday, we started the game [like] the team we were in the second half of Friday’s game,” Leone said. “We were down a goal twice and came back, it was a different feeling. We always felt like we were fine and we were going to come back.”
To put Friday’s loss behind them, Leone said the team held a meeting to discuss issues on Saturday.
“We have to put a full 90 minutes together,” Leone said. “We certainly have done it but it hasn’t been consistent. They did that on Sunday and that will continue to be our focus. When we do that we’re very good, but when we don’t we open ourselves up to getting in a hole.”
Northeastern’s last chance to put that full 90 minutes of play together at home is Saturday at 3 p.m. on Parson’s Field against Hofstra University.
If they win, the third-place Huskies will earn a guaranteed playoff spot, but if they lose they’ll have to wait on the results of other teams to determine their future.
“It’s senior day and it’s going to be one heck of a game,” Leone said. “We need to come out with that same urgency we did on Sunday because Hofstra is really good and we have a lot of respect for them.”
For Napoli and her fellow seniors, it will be a day filled with emotion.
“It’s still surreal, I don’t think it’s hit me yet,” Napoli said. “It’s going to be really exciting and the team is so supportive. I’m very excited and it’s like the extra nudge to win that game. I hope that we could win another CAA title. If we continue to work as hard as we are, I truly believe that we can make it happen. There’s no greater feeling than winning a college championship.”
