STONY BROOK, N.Y. — Sophomore Ava Laden's brace and senior Evanthia Spyredes' first goal of the year gave the Cornell women's soccer team the lead late in the second half on Friday night, but Stony Brook stormed back to win in overtime, 4-3, at LaValle Stadium.
 
Cornell (1-5-2) fought back to tie the game twice before catching a huge break in the 85th minute to take a 3-2 lead against two-time defending America East champion Stony Brook (3-4-1). A Seawolves throw-in about 30 yards from Cornell's goal was read perfectly and intercepted by freshman Reinna Gabriel. She turned the ball into the midfield toward classmate Peyton Nichols, then the ball bounced back to Gabriel for a long ball in the path of a sprinting Laden behind Stony Brook's back line. The Seawolves goalkeeper read the play well and got to the ball before Laden – but she couldn't connect with the ball on the clearance attempt, and Laden completed the easy conversion from 25 yards into the vacated cage. Gabriel's assist was her first collegiate point.
 
Entering the game on a six-game winless skid, it was exactly the type of break the Big Red needed. But the fortune wouldn't even last two minutes before Stony Brook answered. A once-in-a-lifetime strike from Mari Brenden from an angle 25-30 yards out floated high inside the far post to tie the game and ultimately force overtime. The extra session then only lasted 83 seconds before a free kick from the center stripe bounced precariously toward the top of the 18-yard box. The home side's Alyssa Francese was first to it, free of defenders and ahead of Cornell's charging goalkeeper, and she got just enough steam behind her looping header to send the ball bouncing into the net one last time.
 
It was a harsh result for a Big Red squad that had scratched its way back a couple of times. It marked the first time since Oct. 13, 2014 that Cornell erased multiple deficits in the same game. Stony Brook opened the scoring just 3:21 in, but Cornell leveled the game before halftime on Laden's first goal in the 30th minute. The conversion came after a perfectly weighted pass from junior Ashley Durik.
 
The Seawolves struck again in the 65th after some defensive confusion following a throw-in, but the Big Red countered about six minutes later on Spyredes' goal. Junior Kendall Patten's free kick near midfield found the head of junior Emily St. John, who flicked the ball toward the middle. After it hit a defender, sophomore Reagan Pauwels won a battle with another defender, poking the ball toward the top of the 18-yard box. An opportunistic Spyredes pounced on the chance, striking the ball on first touch into the net to the goalkeeper's right side.
 
Laden's performance marked the Big Red's first brace since Durik scored twice against Iona in her first collegiate game – a 3-1 victory over Iona to open the 2019 season. Laden has taken over the Ivy League scoring lead with 13 points, and her five goals are now tied for the league lead with Harvard's Angela Caloia and Penn's Mia Shenk.
 
Cornell will now shift its attention to Ivy League play, starting with a 1 p.m. match against visiting Columbia on Saturday, Sept. 25 in Ithaca at Berman Field.