By Matthew MacCormack, news correspondent
The wins keep piling up for the Northeastern women’s soccer team. The Huskies (9-5-2) currently hold a five game winning streak after dominating wins over Towson University and James Madison University (JMU) last weekend. The victories also brought the team’s conference record to a perfect 4-0-0, leaving the Huskies atop the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) standings.
On Friday, Towson rolled into Parsons Field for a CAA showdown, but the Tigers couldn’t mount much competition against the Huskies.
The women got off to a quick start, scoring six minutes in. From midfield, freshman striker Carly Wilhelm delivered a perfect ball down the sideline to her classmate, forward Kayla Capuzzo. From there, Capuzzo crossed a left-footed kick to the back post where senior striker Lahaina Zoller headed in the match’s first goal. NU continued its dominance throughout the first half, constantly attacking the Towson net.
The second half saw three Husky scores with two women netting their first career goals.
Despite being an integral part of the Husky offensive success all season long, Capuzzo had been unable to find the back of the net from the striker position. That changed Friday night. Early in the second half, Capuzzo poked the ball past the Towson defenders for her first collegiate goal.
The forward was more than relieved when she finally connected.
“It felt great,” Capuzzo said. “I’m happy and hopefully I’ll get some more now.”
Head Coach Tracey Leone was also excited to have her talented striker finally slot one home.
“You can’t measure someone just by their stats and she’s that kind of player,” Leone said. “But now that she’s got that goal, I hope she feels like ‘alright, I’m ready to go!’”
The Husky domination didn’t cease after Capuzzo’s goal. Five minutes later, senior center back Bianca Calderone fired a free kick into the box and sophomore defender Mackenzie Dowd was left unmarked. Dowd took care of business, burying a header for a 3-0 Husky lead.
In the closing minutes, redshirt sophomore Breeana Koemans, who made her first start in the midfield after dealing with an injury, floated a fantastic shot into the top right corner for her first collegiate goal. The stunner put the Huskies on top for good, 4-0.
After the win over Towson, JMU was the next victim on the Husky hit list. After beating the Dukes 3-1 in the CAA tournament final last year, the Huskies were determined to rebuke any attempt at JMU revenge.
It was none other than Lahaina Zoller who got things started for the Huskies on Sunday. The goal was created yet again by Wilhelm, who unleashed a through ball that put Zoller in position to bury home an early goal. Just seven minutes in, the Huskies held a 1-0 lead. Possession remained in NU’s favor for the rest of the first frame.
Midway through the second half, Wilhelm once again proved her worth, earning a penalty kick after being dragged down in the box. Dowd emerged as the kick taker for NU and the sophomore didn’t hesitate in burying the PK for her fourth goal in as many games, giving the Huskies a 2-0 lead that would hold until the end.
The freshman attackers truly emerged during the weekend series. Strikers Capuzzo and Wilhelm, as well as midfielder Hannah Lopiccolo, were instrumental in creating chances for the Huskies. Zoller, who is the lone senior member of the Husky front line, has watched the Husky pups grow over the course of the season.
“I’m really grateful for the opportunity to kind of help mentor this new, young freshman class,” Zoller said. “It’s been kind of a role of mine to help them and guide them.”
With the two game-winners, Zoller did enough to earn CAA Player of the Week honors, marking the third time a member of the team has claimed the title this season.
NU has now held opponents scoreless for five straight games (540 straight minutes) and leads the NCAA with 11 shutouts on the season. The Huskies have also picked things up offensively, averaging more than 2.5 goals per outing over the past five contests.
With the success, the Huskies must take care of themselves moving forward with the five games remaining in the regular season.
“They’re in a great rhythm right now. We don’t have to work on anything big at this point,” Leone said. “It’s about keeping them in rhythm, keeping them healthy and keeping them excited to play.”
Next up for the women is a game at Hofstra University, the preseason favorite in the CAA.
“We’re in the groove right now,” Capuzzo said. “We’re on fire.”
Hopefully, the red-hot Huskies can keep burning through the rest of the CAA teams down the home stretch of conference play.
Photo by Jim Pierce, Northeastern Athletics
