The Huskies were hungry for a win after a tough loss to Northeastern last weekend and found themselves successful, routing Central Connecticut State 4-0 after 90 minutes. While the game wasn’t on their home turf, the easy travel was in their favor as they were able to make their presence felt at the top of the game.
Play was scoreless after the first 45 minutes but UConn dominated overall possession and shots on goal as it had three attempts on goal in the opening half and nine shots on frame compared to CCSU’s seven shots on goal throughout the game. UConn didn’t wait to get active early on offense as midfielder Abby Jones let one fly just 47 seconds into the game. Only 12 minutes later another shot was taken by forward Jaydah Bedoya that was deflected just left of goal. Central Connecticut’s goalie, Caitlin Murphy, didn’t have an easy day as she continued to be challenged by the Huskies frontline.
Connecticut goalie Kaitlin Mahoney was challenged early on but made comfortable saves in the early minutes of the first half and would continue to do so the rest of the competition. Action picked up 15 minutes into the second half as Jones found the back of the net after an assist from junior forward Jada Konte. Seconds later, Konte would find her way on to the scorers list as she scored an unassisted goal in the 57th minute. Quickly up 2-0 UConn found itself in a comfortable spot but knew there was still much more game to be played. Konte made sure to keep her rhythm as she sent another shot towards goal a minute later but just couldn’t get behind Murphy as she made a quick save in the center of the box.
Bedoya continued what both Jones and Konte started as she put the Huskies up three goals to none in the 63rd minute. Head coach Maggie Rodriguez kept a well circulating line up, allowing multiple players to have their time on field but was also strategic in her substitutions.
While the stat sheet could support the notion that both UConn and CCSU were chippy at times with 11 fouls for UConn and 13 for Central Connecticut, the only yellow card to be given out was to UConn freshman forward, Chioma Okafor in the 79th minute. The shooting campaign for UConn wouldn’t stop there however, as sophomore midfielder Peyton Pettiford-Rowan rounded out the afternoon with an unassisted goal, her first goal of the season, making the score 4-0.
Sunday’s win makes this the third shutout of the season for Mahoney. The women return home this Friday, Sept. 16, for a 7 p.m. game against the 3-2-1 Yale Bulldogs at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium in Storrs, CT.
