MONTREAL – It was an unlucky Friday the 13th for the McGill women's soccer team as division-leading Laval rallied with about 15 minutes remaining for a 1-1 draw to kickoff an early start to Homecoming festivities at Percival Molson Stadium, Friday.
The result extended McGill's undefeated streak at home to 4-0-2 during regular season play.
Chloe Renaud of St. Hubert, Que., had given McGill a 1-0 lead in the 43rd minute of play. It was the second marker of the season for the 5-foot-4 midfielder, who converted a short pass from
Annika Schmunk, who had received a left-footed, 20-yard centering pass from defender
Ariel Carignan.
It appeared that would hold up as the deciding goal but Laval got a lucky break in the 76th minute.
Daphnee Blouin fired a rocket off the far right cross-bar, which took a bizarre bounce and teammate
Megane Darchen pounced upon the rebound to score the equalizer.
Laval had a 12-5 advantage in attempted shots, including an 8-3 edge on net but McGill goalkeeper
Sophie Guilmette was on her game and registered seven saves to preserve the draw. For the Rouge et Or, 'keeper
Anne-Marie Laroche was credited with two saves.
The Rouge et Or also had a 6-3 margin in corner kicks and a favourable 8-5 margin in fouls.
In head-to-head confrontations, the tie snapped a two-game losing streak to Laval, dating back to a 0-0 draw at home on Oct. 16, 2022. The Martlets haven't beaten Laval since a 2-1 decision on Oct. 20, 2019.
With three games left to play, Laval improved to 9-0-2 and holds a three-point cushion over the second-place Montreal Carabins (8-2-2). The Rouge et Or will host Montreal in a first-place showdown on Oct. 15.
McGill (6-2-4), one of only two teams to steal points from Laval this season, has reduced its magic number to one for clinching third place ahead of UQAM (5-5-2) in the eight-team RSEQ conference. The Martlets could seal the deal in their next game, which will be played at UQAM on Oct. 15. Then, the regular season will conclude with a home game against Sherbrooke (3-5-4) on Oct. 22. Both are slated to kickoff at 3:30 p.m.
MARTLETS MURMURS: Among the many Martlets soccer alumni that showed up for a very successful Homecoming event, was Kelsey
Wilson, Naomi
Hasegawa, Jamie
Sochasky, Michy
Reimbold, Kristen
Greer, Sonya
Matthews, Sharon
Tait, Josie
Dutil, Angela
Corinthios, Elaine
Cobb, Odile
Desbois, Heidi
Bloomfield, Gayle
Noble, Luce
Mongrain, Ariane
Ducharme, Barbara
Bruckert, Jane
Shaw, Sarah
Cartwright, Sacha
Liben and former head coach Tony
Iachetta...
The Martlets were dressed in spiffy new uniforms for the first time at home. The new gear arrived a few weeks ago but the Martlets were on the road. They were home last week but wore their pink kits in what was the team's annual fundraiser for breast cancer. The new adidas tops have thick horizontal crimson stripes (composed of thin stripes), nested on a bright red base. There are three white vertical stripes down each side. Café de Mercanti, which signed a partnership deal last January, is featured in front. The material features lightweight fabric designed to absorb moisture. It has an Interlock, hydrophilic finish known as "aeroready", made in part with recycled materials.
BOXSCORE
RSEQ STATS & STANDINGS
SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
CELL:
514-983-7012
E-MAIL:
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
