ITHACA, N.Y. — Senior forward
Alanna Colbert's goal in the 51st minute proved to be the deciding goal, and Cornell withstood a late St. Bonaventure rally to earn a 3-2 season-opening victory Thursday afternoon at Berman Field.
Playing through a steady rain that eased only in the final 10 to 15 minutes, the Big Red (1-0-0) built a three-goal advantage before protecting a one-goal lead over the final 8:54.
After freshman goalkeeper
Sofia Kerrigan helped Cornell settle into the match with two saves during a 22-second attacking sequence by St. Bonaventure (1-1-0) in the 19th minute, Cornell's offense was able to find its rhythm. Junior midfielder
Ivy Tolbert opened the scoring in the 35th minute, netting her first collegiate goal on a finish from inside the 18-yard box off assists from Colbert and freshman forward
Hayes Wheeler. Senior midfielder and co-captain
Emily Gibbons doubled the lead in the 44th minute, sending a right-footed shot off the right post and into the lower-left corner following a pass from freshman defender
Camryn Savig.
The two late first-half goals reflected Cornell's sustained pressure, as the Big Red held a 12-2 advantage in shots before halftime.
Kerrigan stopped St. Bonaventure's first shot on goal of the second half in the 50th minute before Cornell struck again 52 seconds later. Colbert finished a right-footed attempt from the right side of the box after receiving a pass from Gibbons, giving each player a goal and an assist.
"Delighted with the win, delighted with everything apart from the first 10 or 15 minutes and the last 10 or 15 minutes," said Cornell head coach
Rob Ferguson. "In between those two timeframes we were excellent. Offensively, we possibly played as well as I've seen us play. It looked very free, very natural, very composed. It looked like people knew what we want to do collectively, which was excellent."
St. Bonaventure made the finish tense when Liana Tata capitalized on a penalty kick in the 76th minute and Aofie Murphy converted a sliding shot from the right side of the box off a pass from Hannah Smith in the 82nd minute. Cornell's defense held from there, and sophomore forward
Jessica Alessi forced a save in the 90th minute.
Kerrigan completed the victory with three saves as Cornell finished with advantages of 21-8 in shot attempts, 8-5 in shots on goal and 6-4 in corner kicks.
Savig, Wheeler and Kerrigan all started in their collegiate debuts, while sophomore midfielder
Bella Grabowski and freshman defender
Ella Pfeiffer recorded their first collegiate minutes off the bench. Ferguson praised all three starting freshmen for their first-start contributions.
"They were all excellent," Ferguson said. "Sophia's, I'm sure, very happy with the win but frustrated she doesn't have a clean sheet, because she deserved one. Cam was excellent and Hayes was what she's been all preseason — just a threat, but also a team player."
The victory gave Cornell its highest scoring output in a season opener since a 3-1 win over Iona in 2019, and its first season-opening win since beating Canisius 2-0 in 2021. The Big Red are unbeaten in four consecutive home openers (2-0-2) and improved to 8-1-7 over their last 16 home non-conference matches.
Cornell continues its season-opening four-match homestand Sunday, Aug. 23, when it welcomes Boston College (2-0-0) to Berman Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m., and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
