BRONX, N.Y. - After a disappointing result last Sunday on the road at Colgate, the Red Foxes rekindled their 2011 defensive spirit with a 1-0 shutout victory over Fordham. After seven shutouts last season, the recipe of strong defending and goalkeeping was on display for Marist on Sunday afternoon. On the strength of senior Caitlin Landsman's (Burke, Va.) shutout and sophomore Marjana Maksuti's (Delmar, N.Y.) first collegiate goal, the Red Foxes improved to 3-1 on the 2012 season.
Playing without forward threat Amanda Epstein (Jericho, N.Y.), the Red Foxes' offense barely missed a beat in the first half, as the team had two strong scoring opportunities in the first 18 minutes, as juniors Samantha Panzner (Livingston, N.J.) and Rycke Guiney (Naperville, Ill.) each put shots on goal. Panzner chance was courtesy of a Kylee McIntosh (Cheshire, Conn.) cross, which she headed on net, while Guiney spun off her defender and ripped a shot from just inside the 18.
Another storyline to watch for Marist prior to Sunday's contest was the Battle of the Maksuti Twins as sophomore midfielder Marjana was meeting her twin Kristina, a Fordham forward, for the first time collegiately. Luckily for the Red Foxes, Marjana got the initial lead as she connected on her first-ever goal off of a high, looping cross by senior Jessica Arabia (Naperville, Ill.) at 21:15. After taking a pass back, Arabia launched the cross from 35 yards out and hit a leaping Maksuti near the penalty stripe.
Fordham didn't go down lightly in the first half as they registered seven shots of their own, putting two on goal. It would've been eight shots if not for a strong slide tackle from the side by a sprinting McIntosh, who pushed the ball away from the Ram striker, who was spotting up from 20 yards out.
At the half, Fordham was outshooting Marist 7-6, though the Red Foxes had a 5-2 advantage in shots on goal.
In the second period, the Rams continued building off the offensive momentum that they closed the first half with. Unfazed, the Red Fox defense bent but never broke as the quintet of Chelsea Botta (East Longmeadow, Mass.), Marissa Mertens (Hicksville, N.Y.), Melanie Rigo (Huntington, N.Y.), Arabia and McIntosh stood tall in front of Landsman. By the end of the half, Fordham registered nine shots, including four on goal. One highlight for the Red Foxes defense came courtesy of Botta, as she thwarted three consecutive Fordham scoring opportunities with leaping headers.
Meanwhile on offense, the Red Foxes had three dangerous scoring drives in the second. Freshman Alysa Murphy (Douglassville, Pa.) spearheaded the first opportunity as she took her defender to the corner before crossing the ball to a waiting Jackie Frey (Monroe, N.Y.) in the six-yard box. Unfortunately for Marist , a Fordham defender toed the ball away before her shot.
In the seventieth minute, the Red Foxes got aggressive on the offensive side of the ball as Arabia moved up from her right-back position and took an overlap pass from Guiney before sprinting down the sideline and testing Fordham's goalkeeper with a hard shot.
With Fordham focusing on offense down the stretch, the Red Fox forward duo of Jaclynn Sabia (Wayne, N.J.) and Alycia Cartica (Pleasant Valley, N.Y.) nearly connected for an insurance goal as Sabia played an outstanding outlet pass to Cartica, who drew two defenders and held the ball until Sabia was in position to rip a shot that missed a foot over the goal.
After ninety minutes of hard fought, physical soccer, Maksuti's goal held up as the Red Foxes secured the 1-0 victory.
For the game, Fordham outshot Marist 16-9, though the Red Foxes and Rams each finished with six shots on goal. In her first start of 2012, Landsman earned a clean sheet victory with six saves. This marked her 10th career victory and seventh shutout.
The Red Foxes will next be in action on Wednesday, Sept. 5 when they travel to Storrs, Conn. to face off with the UConn Huskies of the Big East in a 7 p.m. matchup.
