WASHINGTON – Time after time, Georgetown kept knocking at the door.  Two goals were called back after Hoya players were called offside.  Five players hit crossbars or posts.  And still, after nearly 80 minutes, the Hoyas were tied with visiting St. Francis (Pa.).   But just before the game hit the 82nd minute, sophomore defender Mary Kroening (Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury) was in the perfect spot at the right time, heading a ball past Red Flash goalkeeper Brianna Butcher to lift the Hoyas to a 1-0 win over St. Francis (Pa.) at North Kehoe Field Sunday afternoon.   

It was the third-straight win for the Hoyas, who improve to 6-2-0 overall, and ended a three-game win streak for St. Francis, who falls to 3-3-0 overall.

Georgetown out-shot St. Francis (Pa.), 33-5, including a 21-4 advantage in the first half.  The Hoyas took 11 corner kicks while limiting the Red Flash to five.

“I didn’t think they sat back in,” Head Coach Dave Nolan said.  “I just felt we didn’t do a good job of moving the ball quickly enough.  We allowed them to get back behind the ball when we had the ball. I was at the girls to run at people a little bit more as opposed to pass it through them because it would draw defenders out and create space.  We really didn’t do it enough.

“I thought they had a great game plan and their two outside forwards did a really good job.  They created chances and gave us problems but we had Elizabeth (Hanna) to thank for three or four saves.”

The decisive goal was just one of many opportunities for the Hoyas throughout the afternoon, but they finally capitalized in the 82nd minute.  An initial shot, a bullet from senior midfielder Kelly D’Ambrisi (Trumbull, Conn./Lauralton Hall Academy) from about 20 yards, was punched over the goal by Butcher.  That resulted in a corner kick for redshirt senior midfielder Ingrid Wells (Upper Montclair, N.J./Montclair), whose shot landed at the feet of junior defender Christina O’Tousa (Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor). 

O’Tousa’s shot was blocked on the near side of the box, but she was able to maintain control of the ball and took a dribble toward the end line before sending a cross to the box.  Her cross was met by Kroening, who was planted on the near post and deposited the shot past Butcher at 81:59 to give the Hoyas the lead.

The Hoyas continued to press in the final minutes, with a shot from sophomore defender Emily Menges (Garden City, N.Y./Garden City) hitting the crossbar and follow up shots from Wells and D’Ambrisi each going high.

While Georgetown had a ton of opportunities in the first half, including an apparent goal from Wells that was called offside, St. Francis had two of the best chances of the half and would have taken an early lead had it not been for key saves from senior goalkeeper Elizabeth Hanna (Waxhaw, N.C./Weddington).

The Blue & Gray opened by taking three shots over the first eight minutes, but Beatriz Maros de Carvalho found space on the near side and had a shot from 18 yards out that Hanna punched over in the 10th minute.  Two minutes later, Stephanie Boulter took a feed through the middle of the field, but Hanna was again able to make the save and keep it scoreless.  “She made three quality saves and that’s three shutouts in a row for her,” Nolan said.  “Even at the end, she was brave enough to come out and punch the ball in traffic.  We’re asking a lot of her, but she’s a brave kid.  She’s playing like a senior.”

Hanna and Georgetown held off those two chances, plus another great opportunity early in the second half and continued to shoot until finally breaking through with Kroening’s header.  “That’s the way our sport is, soccer is a funny game,” Nolan said.  “The stats show the shots were 33-5, but they had four really good chances.  We probably hit five crossbars, but you have to find a way to finish a game.”

Georgetown hits the road next weekend, opening BIG EAST Conference play on Friday, Sept. 16 at Seton Hall.  Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.

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