ITHACA, N.Y. — Sophomore forwards Alanna Colbert and Sydney Allen scored first-half goals to provide enough cushion for the Cornell women's soccer team as it defeated Yale, 2-1, at Berman Field on Saturday afternoon.

Yale's Vienna Lundstedt tallied the lone goal of the match for the visitors, netting her second goal of the season in the 54th minute in an effort to ignite a second-half comeback for the Bulldogs (8-5-1, 2-2-1 Ivy). First-year goalkeeper Anna Shamgochian matched her season high in saves (seven) in the setback for Yale.

Joining Colbert and Allen in the scoring column for the Big Red was senior forward Laken Gallman and senior defender Lily Ellingson, who assisted on the respective goals for the Big Red (3-7-4, 2-3-0 Ivy). Junior goalkeeper Natalie Medugno notched her second victory of the season, halting a trio of Bulldog shots.

"Must-win game for us. We knew it all week. We've known it for a couple of weeks," Cornell women's soccer head coach Rob Ferguson said. "We knew whatever happens [in the last couple of weeks] it was going to be a must-win game. The training mindset, intensity, was superb and top-class all week, and you saw it in the first half. We scored two goals, we probably should've had more. Really proud of them."

Cornell owned an 8-3 advantage in shot attempts over the opening 45 minutes of action, which included a 6-1 edge for the Big Red over the final 15-plus minutes.

Not even a minute after coming onto the pitch as a substitute, Colbert made her presence known as she opened the scoring in the 30th minute. Capitalizing on a Yale turnover inside the 18-yard box on an attempted pass by Shamgochian, Gallman intercepted the pass and directed the ball to Colbert's boot for her right-footed strike.

"It was definitely a confidence-booster," Colbert said. "We needed it, and we've been training hard all week. To come out here and actually prove ourselves was awesome."

Allen doubled the Big Red's lead five minutes later when she headed a right-wing cross from senior defender Lily Ellingson at the left post.

The Big Red peppered Shamgochian over the final seven-plus minutes, registering a trio of shots on goal which came from Colbert and a pair from junior midfielder Tanum Nelson.

Lundstedt trimmed the Big Red's lead on a flicked shot over the head of Medugno in the 54th minute, benefiting from a pass by Andie Miller.

Cornell logged five of the next six shot attempts, but could not increase its lead. Yale responded in the final seven minutes of the contest trying to find the equalizer on three shot attempts, but the lone attempt on goal came from Ashley Kirschner in the 87th minute that was nabbed by Medugno. 

MATCH NOTES
• Saturday was the 42nd all-time meeting between Cornell and Yale. The Big Red snapped its six-match winless streak against the Bulldogs, registering its first win over Yale since also posting a 2-1 win on Oct. 15, 2016.

• Each of the last 15 contests between Cornell and Yale have been decided by one goal or less.

• Allen's goal was her team-leading third game-winning goal of the season, becoming the first Cornell player to register at least three game-winners in a season since Maneesha Chitanvis also had three during the 2010 season.

MOST GAME-WINNING GOALS IN A SEASON
Cornell Program History
1. 5, Laurie Collier (1987)
T2. 4, Meagan McMahan (1983, 1984)
T2. 4, Amy Finkelstein (1990)
T2. 4, Jen Tidsbury (1992)
T2. 4, Amy Duesing (1993)
T7. 3, 14 times by 12 players, Last: Sydney Allen (2014)

• Cornell's two-goal first half matched its season high for the most goals scored in a half this season, matching its output from its Sept. 1 victory over Syracuse, 2-1.

• The nine shots on goal for Cornell were the most this season and matched its highest output since also logging nine shots on goal against Penn in the regular-season finale last season (Oct. 28, 2023). 

• The Big Red is 3-0-1 this season, and 12-2-6 overall under Rob Ferguson, when scoring the match's first goal. Cornell has won its last three matches and is unbeaten over its last four contests when netting the first goal.

UP NEXT
Cornell will play a pivotal Ivy League match in Providence, R.I., next Saturday when the Big Red battles Brown (5-3-5, 2-1-2 Ivy). The Bears currently hold onto third place in the Ivy League table with nine points while Yale and Cornell are right behind with seven and six points, respectively.

First touch between the Big Red and Bears from Stevenson-Pincince Field is scheduled for 4 p.m. Match action will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Brown, who leads the all-time series with Cornell, 29-7-5, will look to extend its 14-match unbeaten streak against Cornell (12-0-2) since the Big Red last defeated the Bears, 2-0, on Oct. 26, 2008.