PHILADELPHIA — Penn's Mia Fuss and Abbey Cook netted second-half tallies for the Quakers, aiding the hosts to a 2-1 comeback victory over Cornell at Penn Park on an unseasonably warm Saturday fall afternoon.

Cornell junior midfielder Sydney Malaga recorded the lone goal for the Big Red, who concludes the 2023 season with a 4-5-6 overall record and a 0-5-2 mark in Ivy League play.

Junior goalkeeper Erica Fox made two saves for the Big Red in the setback, while Penn's Laurence Gladu shoved aside eight Big Red shots as the Quakers (6-7-3, 1-4-2 Ivy) snapped its 15-match winless streak in Ancient Eight play.

"Very happy with the first half performance. Controlled the game very well on both sides of the ball," Cornell women's soccer head coach Rob Ferguson said. "The frustation today lies in not finding the second goal in the first half or when our moments came while up 1-0 in the second half. We certainly had enough moments to put the game to bed.

"Fair play to Penn, they adjusted the system, and pressed to cause us more problem in the second half, but to concede two goals from three efforts on target is really disappointing. It's another game where we have controlled the balance of the game, had the edge statistically, and we aren't on the right side of the ouctome."
 
The Big Red threatened early in the opening five-plus minutes when it registered three of its six game-high corner kicks.

Both teams traded scoring chances past the midway point as Penn's Lauren Teuschl had her scoring chance bookended by shots on goal by Lily Ellingson and Laken Gallman.

Malaga netted the first goal of the game in the 38th minute when scored on a 40-yard shot with Penn's goalkeeper displaced.

"Great improvision from Malaga to finish from 40 yards with the keeper out of position," Ferguson said.

Penn evened the contest with a goal in the 57th minute as Fuss registered her first goal of the season.

Cook gave the Quakers the lead in the 80th minute, capitalizing on her own rebound to net her team-leading third goal of the year.

Maddie Leroy had the lone shot on goal in an attempt to level the match, but Gladu made the save.

"It's a tough way to end, but we have a lot of on-field positives and growth to take from this season," Ferguson assured. "More importantly, we know the areas in which we need to improve, on and off the field, and that work starts today. Onwards and upwards.

"I'm thankful for what this group of seniors have done over the four years. They are leaving this program in a very different place than they found it, and for that they can be incredibly proud. Now we all need to build on this massively positive change, and ensure we improve each and every season, on a culture level and on the field."

GAME NOTES
• Cornell and Penn met for the 32nd time on Saturday afternoon. The Quakers increased its lead in the series to 21-7-4 with the victory.

• With Malaga's first-half goal, she became the fourth Big Red player to register three-plus goals this season. It is the first time a Cornell team had at least a quartet of players with at least three goals in the same season since 2013 (4).

SEASON NOTES
• Cornell concludes the 2023 season with a .467 win percentage, the program's best overall mark since 2015 (.647).

• The Big Red's 1.40 goals-per-match average is the program's highest since 2005 when it posted a 1.53 per-match clip.

• Malaga's goal solidified Cornell has scored in 14 matches for the first time since 2003 when it went 14-of-16.

• Cornell found the back of the net in 14 of its 15 matches this season, marking the fewest contests in a season in which it was shutout (1). The previous record of two was initially done in 1986 and 2003.