DOVER, Del. - In her second game in goal, sophomore Darcy Pelz-Butler (Silver Spring, Md.) recorded a career-high eight saves, but the Delaware State University women's soccer team couldn't get the offense in gear as they fell, 1-0, to Binghamton University Sunday afternoon at Alumni Stadium.
"Darcy's doing an absolutely tremendous job as our goalie," said DSU head coach Nitan Soni. "This was a quality Binghamton team and they took quality shots on goal. Darcy did the simple things very well."
The Bobcats got off 10 shots in the first period, with Pelz-Butler saving three of those shots. BU's Mary DeWitte scored from five feet out at the 32nd minute to give the Bobcats a 1-0 lead.
The Hornet defense held BU to just seven shots in the second half, with Pelz-Butler saving five.
"We worked really hard in front of Darcy," Soni commented. "We had to attack more and Binghamton's intensity forced us to be on the back foot. We had to think about being really attack and forward minded and I think we did a great job of that."
Pelz-Butler, a true fielder, showed off her newfound goalie skills in the 72nd minute off of a free kick 30 feet out from Connie Gormley. Pelz-Butler pulled the ball out of the air on a tremendous diving save to her right to keep the score at 1-0.
"There was not a whole lot that we did wrong tactically," remarked Soni. "We have played two 90-minute games within almost 24 hours and we definitely had some tired legs out there. We'll be able to take the week to gradually wind ourselves out of preseason camp and rejuvenate our legs and come out mentally fresh next weekend."
Del State moves to 0-2 on the season while the Bobcats improve to 1-1. Carrie Martin earned her first win of the season for BU.
The Hornets play their next two games on the road at St. Peter's (N.J.) on Friday, Aug. 26 and at Drexel on Sunday, Aug. 28.
