BY TYLER MILLIKEN //

The Curry women’s soccer team continued its impressive start to the season on Saturday, by defeating Johnson State at home, 6-1, in a non-conference matchup.

Heading into yesterday’s matchup, the Colonels had lacked consistency on offense. In the first two games of the season, Curry’s offense scored early and then disappeared in the second half. Head coach Jason Tassinari seemed to erase that issue against the Badgers as his team scored four goals in the final 39 minutes of the matchup.

Once the first whistle was blown, Curry attacked on offense, and it didn’t take long for the game’s first goal to be scored. Freshman Soleil Galagarza used some impressive footwork to place the ball in-front of the net, before freshman Korinna Tsonis put Curry on the board in the second minute.

Curry’s communication on both sides of the ball was near flawless, and it didn’t take long for the Badgers to become frustrated. Johnson State implemented some physicality into their gameplan as the first half continued, but it was stopped by the refs after a few controversial slide tackles.

In the 36th minute, the Colonels pushed across their second goal of the game, as freshman Lexi Revis booted the ball past Badgers’ goalkeeper Kalia Lemmer. Prior to Revis scoring, Lemmer made a series of nice saves but it wasn’t enough to slow down Curry’s momentum.

At halftime, the Colonels carried a 2-0 lead, but Tassinari wasn’t satisfied. He was frustrated with his team’s inability to capitalize on more scoring opportunities.

In the second half. Curry’s offense found its rhythm but the Badgers struck first. Senior Kylie Aither took advantage of some sloppy play inside of the box, and skipped a ball past Sophomore Kristen Buzzotta. It was Johnson State’s lone goal, and it didn’t discourage Curry in the slightest.

Isabella Shields, Korinna Tsonis, Emma Trahant, and Abby Bostrom each scored for the Colonels in the second half.  Even after altering their gameplan a few times, Johnson State didn’t have a response for Curry’s offensive rampage. It helped the Colonels improve to 3-0 on the season, while the Badgers fell to 2-1.

Curry attempted 57 shots on goal during the game, while Johnson State only mustered 10. It marked another shutdown performance for the Colonels’ defense.

After the final whistle, Tsonis talked about the team’s growth as of late.

“Honestly, I think that we just were all pretty tired last week. We were just getting into the groove of things and figuring out our system of play,” said Tsonis. 

Tassinari echoed some of those sentiments.  

“In a weird way, not playing against Wheaton on Wednesday I think may have benefited us,” said Tassinari. “We need a little bit more time. I’m not saying we didn’t want to play them, but I think it indirectly worked in our favor that we got a few more days off and some time to train.”

The Colonels’ home tilt versus Wheaton College was cancelled on Wednesday due to storms.

The Colonels return to action on Tuesday, Sept. 12 at Clark University. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at the Granger Fields.