Raiders Drop Heartbreaker at Fairfield

FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Colgate was unable to convert on its scoring chances and Fairfield survived long enough to spoil the Raiders season opener 1-0 in double overtime Thursday evening at Lessing Field. Colgate (0-1-0) dominated possession from start to finish and had opportunities to put Fairfield (1-0-0) away early. But Stags keepers Aytana Muschajew and Gena Pike stifled the Raiders with eight combined saves for the shutout. The lone shot to find the back of the net came in the 107th minute, when Fairfield's Brooke Jones spun and struck a low shot from outside the box inside the right post. Kelly Chiavaro lost her footing as the ball crawled past the goal line. It was all Colgate early on. Abby Sotomayor generated a chance to get the Raiders on the board in the seventh minute when her through ball reached Adrienne Vaughn alone inside the box. She tangled with Muschajew though and the Stags keeper smothered the ball to eliminate the threat. After reaching the first half's midway point, Mia Ciardiello came away with arguably the best chance for either side. Sage DiGiulio issued a perfect through ball to Ciardiello breaking toward the goal, but her shot ricocheted off the post and the two teams were scoreless at the half. Sotomayor was busy again on the offensive end and orchestrated a perfect give-and-go, setting up DiGiulio in open space for a 30-yard shot that beamed off the crossbar. Dominant possession turned into a flurry of late opportunities. Sotomayor dangled around a defender and attacked the left post but her initial shot was saved. Caelyn Smith fired a rebound on target, but Pike, who played the last 61 minutes, made another desperate diving save. The Raiders would not get in better position in either of the overtimes before Fairfield's golden goal with 3:10 left in double overtime.