Syracuse women’s soccer ended a five-match scoring drought in dramatic fashion Thursday, defeating Pittsburgh 2-1 in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup at SU Soccer Stadium.
Abby Incorvaia gave the Orange an early lead 3:48 into the match, scoring her third goal of the season after Maya Galbus’ shot was stopped by Pittsburgh goalkeeper Elli Johnson. Incorvaia had initially found the net less than two minutes into the match, but the goal was overturned following video review because of an offside call.
Pittsburgh responded after halftime, eventually tying the match in the 68th minute when Desiree Reed’s shot found the net for her first goal of the season.
The Orange regained the lead with less than three minutes remaining. Incorvaia delivered a free kick into the box, where Anna Croyle kept the ball alive with a header before Farrah Stephens-Martin finished the sequence at 87:16.
Syracuse goalkeeper Maya Naimoli was critical in preserving the victory. She recorded a season-high eight saves, including a stop on Talyn Guthrie with 44 seconds remaining to protect the one-goal advantage.
Pittsburgh finished with a 26-15 edge in shots and put nine attempts on target compared with six for Syracuse. The Orange held a 5-4 advantage in corner kicks.
The victory improved Syracuse’s record to 4-5-2 overall and 1-3-0 in conference play, while Pittsburgh fell to 6-4-1 and 0-3-0.
Syracuse also extended its advantage in the all-time series to 13-10-4.
The Orange return to action on October 3 against nationally ranked Virginia at 7 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to kyle@fingerlakes1.com.