ITHACA, N.Y. — Sophomore Ava Laden scored her third goal of the season to breathe life into the Cornell women's soccer team's game against Binghamton on Wednesday night, but Binghamton pulled away with a pair of goals in the second half to secure a 3-1 victory over the Big Red at Berman Field.
 
With day-long rain clearing just before kickoff on the slick pitch, Binghamton (4-4-1) was on the front foot from the first whistle. Olivia McKnight's goal in the 13th minute armed the visitors with an early lead, and they seemed poised to build on it until the final 10 minutes of the first half. That's when Cornell (1-4-2) came to life, ultimately producing an equalizer.
 
Sophomore Reagan Pauwels provided outstanding service to Laden for the Big Red's lone strike on the night. After senior Mofoluke Obiri and freshman Reinna Gabriel won possession for Cornell, Pauwels spun away from some pressure on the defensive side of the center circle. By creating space, Pauwels afforded herself a look at the Bearcats' back line. What she found was a well-timed run by Laden from the middle toward the left corner of the 18-yard box, and a 60-yard ball off Pauwels' preferred left foot was weighted perfectly to send her teammate behind the defense.
 
With more work to be done, Laden gained control and saw the Bearcats' goalkeeper conservatively stationed inside the 6-yard box. That enabled Laden to take a touch before slotting a side-footed shot just inside the far post and give the Big Red its second three-goal scorer of the season, joining freshman Peyton Nichols. It marks the first time Cornell has mutliple three-goal scorers in a season since 2015, when Elizabeth Crowell '17 and Paige DeLoach '18 both had four.
 
The level scoreline at half seemed favorable for the Big Red, which was out-possessed by a 59% to 41% margin over the opening 45 minutes, but the home side was unable to build upon that fortune. An energized Bearcats side proved to be the aggressor early in the second half, and after Maya Anand weaved her way around a pair of defenders inside the 18-yard box before sliding home her fifth goal of the season in the 49th minute, Binghamton staked itself to another lead.
 
Cornell's best chance to equalize came in the 79th minute when junior Ashley Durik's cross into the box was knifed down by the Binghamton defense, only to tee up senior Aidan Julia Reineman from 15 yards – but her slicing shot sank just over the crossbar. A little more than three minutes later, McKnight's second goal of the night sealed Binghamton's victory.
 
The Big Red concludes a busy stretch of three games in six days at 6 p.m. Friday, when it visits two-time defending America East champion Stony Brook.

Starting XI