Pitt women’s soccer (2-1-1, 0-0-0 ACC) began its regular season with four games in August against Georgia, Duquesne, Buffalo and Bucknell. After commendable performances against the Bulldogs and Dukes, Pitt’s poor performance against Buffalo earlier in the season left a bitter taste in the mouth. However, the Panthers rebounded with an impressive performance in their road game against Bucknell.
Georgia
The No. 7The Panthers kicked off the regular season last Thursday, August 16, against No. 14 Georgia – their first season opener against a ranked team in program history. The game ended in a tie, and for the first time since 2016The Panthers didn’t win their first game of the season, but Pitt had more shots on goal than Georgia (18:10) and junior goalkeeper Ellie Breech stopped four shots to start the year.
Duquesne
Pittsburgh experienced another city classic last Sunday, August 18, at Highmark Stadium. Pitt picked up its first regular season win against Duquesne, with sophomore forward Lucia Wells scoring her first career goal in the 84th minute.
By the end of the first half, the Panthers had a 9-5 lead in shots on goal. Veteran forward Sarah Schupansky scored the first goal of the first period, followed by Wells’ goal in the second. Duquesne scored a goal in the final minutes of the game, but Pitt ultimately won 2-1.
buffalo
The Panthers lost to Buffalo for the first time since 1996 on Thursday, August 22. The outstanding performance of Buffalo’s goalie Lexie Thompson led the Bulls to their victory in the rankings. Thompson repeatedly found the ball with his glove and earned nine parades in the game. The senior was 28 Shots from the Panthers to Buffalos 10 on Thursday evening.
The Bulls came out strong, scoring a goal in the first ten minutes of play. Pitt quickly recovered in the 23rd minute when veteran striker Samiah Phiri capitalized on a rebound to equalize.
The teams went to the locker room tied, despite Pitt having possession of the ball for most of the first half. The Panthers fought for another goal early in the second half, but were unable to take the lead. Buffalo found a chance midway through the second half, scoring the winning goal in the 58th minute.
Bucknell
The Panthers bounced back with a stunning performance against Bucknell on Sunday afternoon. Pitt won 5-1 against the Bison. The Panthers went to the locker room after the first half ended 0-0, but came out eager to score points in the second half. The Bison, however, scored first in the 49. Minute. Pitt’s junior defender Katie Zailski equalized with a shot shortly thereafter.
Pitt took the lead with back-to-back goals in the 63rd minute, then senior striker Sarah Schupansky scored her second goal of the game and her team’s fifth goal to seal a 5-1 victory.
The Panthers will continue their streak of away games against Loyola Marymount on August 29. Pitt and LMU met once in 2019 when the Panthers won 5-4The teams’ second face-off ever will begin at 1 p.m. at Sullivan Field in California.
