Rochester, N.Y. – The Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer team dropped a 2-1 decision to RIT in their season opener on Friday afternoon.

Junior Lauren Alley tallied the lone goal for the Ducks (0-1), who were outshot by the Tigers (1-0) 14-12.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Ducks peppered RIT early with shots, as shots by Nicole Angelini and Sarah Wronowski were stopped by Emily Sanchez in the 15th minute. The Stevens backline was excellent, holding the hosts without a shot on goal over the first 36 minutes. Goalkeeper Kenny Donley was pressed into her first action of the game in the 37th minute, making a stop on Valeria Luzio.

RIT held a slim 8-7 advantage in shots over the first 45 minutes, but Stevens had three shots on frame as opposed to one from RIT.

Donley came up with a save 4:53 into the second half, but the hosts notched the game's first goal in the 58th minute. Roberta Moger sent a low cross into the box, where Olivia Harris tapped the ball into the back of the goal for the 1-0 lead.

Stevens hunted for the equalizing tally, with Bley getting denied at the 69:48 mark off a shot from distance. Shortly after, the Ducks were rewarded off another shot from deep. Lauren Alley corralled a ball and rifled a try into the top left corner, tying the match at one.

Both sides attempted shots that were off frame late in the contest, with Angela Dinh having her shot stopped in the 81st minute. Donley parried a shot away and out for a corner kick in the 86th minute, but the Tigers snapped the 1-1 deadlock off the ensuing restart. Nicole Joffe fed Jessie Gomez, who fired a shot that tucked inside the far post for the 2-1 advantage with 3:41 left for the game-winner.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• Alley's goal was the fourth of her career and first since scoring a pair against Delaware Valley on October 25, 2023.
• First-year Sophia Murphy made her first collegiate start in her collegiate debut, as Nicole Angelini, Taylor Truglia, and Malia Chopra made their Stevens debuts.
• Donley made three saves in the setback.

FROM THE FIELD
"Very disappointed not to take a least a point from the game against a good RIT team. I think that would have been a fair result on the balance of play. In a nutshell we are disappointed with the result but there is a lot to take from that performance moving forward. We are less than 2 weeks into working together and the progress that this group has made so far has been very positive. We are definitely on the right track." - Head Coach Stuart Dick.

UP NEXT
The Ducks continue their Rochester trip tomorrow as they face Nazareth at 3 pm. The former Empire 8 Conference foes last met on October 13, 2018, as Stevens won 1-0 on a Julia Panko penalty kick goal in the 23rd minute.