Women’s Soccer Recap: The Red Loses to Columbia in First Ivy Game of the Season

As the sun beat down on Saturday, the Red took to their home turf Berman Field to face the Columbia Lions in the first match of the Ivy season. Despite a strong first half, the Red was unable to fend off Columbia, losing the game 2-0. After the game, Coach Dwight Hornibrook said his team “played a great half” — but “we need to play the second as well as the first.”

Cornell headed into the game with 4-2-1 overall, evenly matched to Columbia’s 4-2-1. The first half of the game reflected that evenness: Both teams played aggressively, resulting in no points on the board. Senior Chrissy Mayer was in goal and made six saves in the second half, skilfully sending the ball back out when Columbia put pressure on the Red.

Women’s Soccer Falls to St. John’s in Final Ivy Tune-Up Match

Even despite the loss to St. John’s, the Red is in a good position entering Ivy play. Cornell heads into playing the Ivies with a 3-0-1 home record for the first time since 2007. But this metric isn’t the only significant improvement for the Red — already, the team has quadrupled its win total from 2018.