NEWARK, Del. — Early strikes from Taisiya Reid and Gabby Riley lifted Delaware (6-0-1) to a 3-1 victory over the Cornell women's soccer team (2-1-2) on Thursday night at Stuart and Suzanne Grant Stadium, extending the Fightin' Blue Hens' unbeaten start to seven games while handing the Big Red its first loss of the season.
Adiat Olaogun-Dickson added her third goal of the year to seal the win, moving into a tie with Reid, Maggie Groh and Lilli Lubic for the team lead in goals. Freshman goalkeeper Sophia Hall anchored the Blue Hens' defense with six saves.
Cornell's lone tally came from sophomore defender
Ella Koschineg, who netted her first career goal in the first half. Freshman goalkeeper
Samantha Qureshey recorded four saves, matching her season high for the second consecutive game and third time on the season.
Reid opened the scoring in the ninth minute, finishing off a rebound after Qureshey denied Lubic's initial shot attempt. Six minutes later, Riley converted a penalty kick after senior defender
Gaby Gonzalez was whistled for a foul inside the box.
Koschineg cut the Big Red's deficit in half in the 38th minute with a left-footed free kick from 25 yards out that skipped past a diving Hall.
Delaware restored its two-goal cushion in the 62nd minute when Olaogun-Dickson raced down the right flank, burying a right-footed strike off a pass from Lubic.
POST-MATCH COMMENTS FROM CORNELL WOMEN'S SOCCER HEAD COACH ROB FERGUSON
"Tough day. We weren't at our best, especially at the beginning of both halves, and that's disappointing. We created a couple of good chances in the first half and didn't put them away, which makes things tough, against a team as good and confident as Delaware. Certainly disappointed with some of the decisions that went against us, but that's the way it goes. We need to improve going into Syracuse."
MATCH NOTES
• Delaware improved to 2-0-0 all-time against Cornell, as the programs met for the first time since Sept. 3, 2010.
• Koschineg's first-half goal marked the third consecutive match in which a Big Red player scored her first collegiate goal, joining senior midfielder
Mariana Kessinger (Aug. 28 vs. La Salle) and junior midfielder
Brooke Brown (Aug. 31 vs. Kent State).
• The teams finished even in shot attempts (13-13) and shots on goal (7-7), while Cornell held a slight 3-2 edge in corner kicks.
NEXT UP
Cornell continues its three-match road trip Sunday at Syracuse (3-1-3). First touch from SU Soccer Stadium is set for 1 p.m. on ACCNX, which can be accessed on ESPN+ with a valid cable subscription.
The Big Red have won the last two meetings against the Orange (1-0 in 2023 and 2-1 in 2024), but are still searching for its first victory at SU Soccer Stadium (0-6-3 all-time).
