TOWSON, Md. – If senior defender Ashley Ventura had her way, the Tigers would wear their gold jerseys for every game during the rest of the season. On the same day the Tigers debuted their new gold jerseys, Ventura scored the first goal of her college career to lead the Tigers to a 1-0 Colonial Athletic Association victory over Virginia Commonwealth University in the CAA opener for both teams at the Towson Center Soccer Complex on Thursday.
Ventura, who made her 63rd career appearance in the win over the Rams, dribbled the ball from midfield and fired a low shot from 24 yards away into the far post with 31:02 remaining in the first half. From there, she helped the Tiger defense post its third shutout of the season by limiting VCU to just ten total shots.
“It was not just about me today,” Ventura said. “We all held it together as a team following the goal and we didn't let down after that. We wanted to get the ball out of the defensive end and make sure that we got rid of the pressure because they were coming at us pretty hard at the end.
“It was great to get a conference win at home,” she added. “We need to get the wins at home in the conference and this was a big win for us. We did what we had to do today.”
After Ventura scored to give the Tigers the one-goal advantage, the Tigers continued to apply the offensive pressure while holding the Rams to just three shots in the first half.
In the 46th minute, the Tigers had a chance to increase their lead to 2-0 when senior forward Erica Marshall took a shot that hit the crossbar.
The Rams offense attempted several chances to even the score, but the Tiger defense prevented VCU from tying the game. In the 88th minute, the Rams had their best opportunity when freshman forward Ashley Grant took a shot that rolled in front of the goal, but senior midfielder Danielle Rosanova cleared the ball away to preserve the shutout.
With 25 seconds remaining, senior June Hartman had one final opportunity to even the score for the Rams, but her attempt was stopped by junior goalkeeper Kristen Sample.
“It was a good result today,” Towson Coach Greg Paynter said. “Obviously, for us to get off to a good start in the conference is important for us to achieve our goals of qualifying for the conference tournament.
“We went out and continued to fight and battle today,” Coach Paynter added. “We were ahead at half-time and VCU came on strong and picked things up in the second half. They had some good chances in the second half, but the defense held strong and we were able to weather the storm.”
Sample, who earned her second shutout of the season, made three saves for the Tigers, who were outshot by a 10-9 margin.
Senior goalkeeper Kate Hudson made two saves in a losing effort for the Rams, who had their two-game win streak snapped.
The Tigers, who won their conference opener for the first time since 2004, will travel to James Madison on Sunday afternoon for a 1 p.m. CAA game against the Dukes.
“It will be a real challenge for us to go down to JMU,” Coach Paynter said. “We went down there earlier in the season for their tournament, so we are prepared for the environment.”
Meanwhile, the Rams will return home to begin a three-game homestand on Sunday afternoon against George Mason.
College Women's Soccer: Towson University 1, Virginia Commonwealth University 0
VCU (4-4-1, 0-1-) 0-0 / 0
Towson (5-4-1, 1-0-0) 1-0 / 1
Goals: TOW – Ashley Ventura 1 (13:58). Saves: VCU – Kate Hudson 2 (90:00, 1 goals allowed); TOW – Kristen Sample 3 (90:00, 0 goals allowed), TEAM 1. Shots: VCU – 9; TOW – 10. Corner Kicks: VCU – 3; TOW – 2. Attendance: 198.
Corner Kicks: VCU is ranked 9th in the latest NSCAA/adidas Mid-Atlantic Region poll along with Richmond ... The Rams had not allowed a goal since the second half of their 1-0 loss against UNC Greensboro on September 6, snapping a scoreless streak of 422:26 … VCU had posted four straight shutouts prior to Thursday's loss and had a 3-0-1 record during that stretch … Ventura became the second Towson player to score their first career goal this season … Freshman Cheyenne Skidmore tallied her first career goal in the Tigers' win over Xavier on August 30 … The Tigers are now 3-4-1 all-time in CAA openers … In the 2004 CAA opener, the Tigers edged Old Dominion by a 3-2 margin … The Tigers defeated the Rams for the first time since 2000 … Towson posted its second win over the Rams in the 11-game series … VCU leads the all-time series by a 6-2-3 margin ... Both of the Tigers' wins in the series have been at home … Of the 11 games played between Towson and VCU, 9 of them have been decided by one goal or less ... Towson was the only home team to win during the CAA's first day of conference play.
