UTICA, NY - The Utica University women's soccer team hosted Ithaca College on Tuesday afternoon at Casamento Field in its 2026 home opener. The Pioneers fought bravely against a strong away side, with
Emily Duro (Wappinger Falls, NY/Roy C. Ketcham) stopping nine attempts at goal. The Pioneers battled in the second half, scoring their first goal of the season, but ultimately fell short 3-1 to Ithaca.
The Bombers outshot Utica by a 24-3 margin, registering 12 on target. Ithaca also possessed the ball for large portions of the match, dictating the flow of the game through the midfield, not allowing Utica to apply pressure. The Pioneers found some success on the counter, breaking the opposing defensive lines on multiple occasions, but unfortunately couldn't capitalize on the efforts. Ithaca led by one goal to nil at halftime, following a top corner effort by the visitors in the 13th minute. Seven of Duros's saves came in the first half, showing her fight to keep her team in the game going into the break. Utica spent the first period finding their feet to start the season but did well to deflect a persistent bombardment of Ithaca attacks.
Going into the second half, the match saw a stalemate of attacks, with the visitors focused on bleeding the game out with possession. It took until the 74th minute for Ithaca to find their second goal off a set piece, with Kyra Lynch heading home a well delivered cross from a corner. Then, the most explosive play of the night occurred less than two minutes later, with
Cora Kraft (Poughquag, NY/Arlington) blasting in a free kick from 25 yards out, catching the goalkeeper sleeping against the momentum of the match. Kraft became a genuine goal threat in 2025 and looks well on her way in continuing that development.
The solo effort from Kraft wasn't enough as Ithaca found their grip on the match again, before scoring their third goal of the night. The goal looked identical to the Bomber's second, with another corner kick goal via Lynch again in the same exact spot. Although the visitors took home a 3-1 win, there seemed to be real positive signs from the Utica side that historically isn't favored in this matchup. Allowing a single goal from open play demonstrates the solid defense that took form in 2025.
The Pioneers (0-1-0, 0-0 Empire 8) will return to the pitch on Friday, September 4, when they travel to Potsdam for their first away trip of 2026. Kickoff starts at 5:00 PM
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