The Dickinson women’s soccer team was held to a 1-1 draw against hosts Penn State Berks on Wednesday night, Sept. 21.

The Red Devils started the first half strong, getting on the board in the 29th minute after a string of crisp passing and possession, when Alexandra Goldrich ’18 successfully connected a header from Eryn McDonald ’20 to hit the back of the net.

Dickinson could not hold on to the lead for long, however, as Penn State Berks’ Dana Sarcinello cleanly scored from an assist by Charlotte Pizzuto three minutes from half time.

Penn State put up a rally in the second half and two overtimes, registering 19 shots (nine on target) to Dickinson’s nine (five on target). The Red Devils ultimately held on for a draw, courtesy of three saves by Mary Katherine Brosnan ’19 and four by Amanda Masterson ’18.

The Red Devils hosted undefeated Swarthmore College on Saturday, Sept. 24 at Miller Memorial Field looking for their first Centennial Conference win.

Despite a dominating first half from the Garnet, the Red Devils were the ones in front when Samantha Knapp ’19 scored an unassisted goal in the 16th minute. The score remained 1-0 at the end of first half.

The Garnet started the second half in the same fashion as the first, and they were rewarded with an equalizer in the 51st minute when Marin McCoy blasted the ball into the back of the net following an assist from Caroline Khanna. McCoy scored again, just 15 minutes from the end of regulation, with another unstoppable shot inside the box.

The Devils mustered numerous chances in the dying minutes of regulation time, with Rachel Lazris ’20 and classmate McDonald both seeing their efforts wide of the post due to outstanding saves by Swarthmore goalie Sydney Hunter who also recorded six saves on the day. Masterson, despite conceding two, tallied an impressive 13 stops.

Swarthmore remains undefeated and has improved to 9-0 overall and 2-0 in Centennial Conference play. Dickinson slips to 4-2-2 overall and 0-2 in the conference.

Dickinson has since travelled to Messiah College on Wednesday, Sept. 28 for a 5 p.m. kick off followed by a trip to Muhlenberg on Saturday, Oct. 1 for a 7 p.m. kick off.