By Ethan Savluk

The Quinnipiac University Bobcats (2-4-2) defeated the Rider University Broncs (4-5) in an extremely balanced conference matchup. Both teams displayed tremendous defense through the match until two late goals by Caitlyn Shaw (North Haven, Conn.) and Beck Kiting (Canberra, Australia) sealed the Bobcats’ victory. The Bobcats advance to 2-0-1 in the MAAC.

The Bobcats’ dominant defense kept the ball in their possession for most of the first half, holding the Broncs to only two total shots, none on goal. The Broncs’ defense was on their heels for most of the half, yet their equally impressive defense held the Bobcats scoreless with no shots on goal.

The second half was more balanced. Rider adjusted at the half, coming out with an up-tempo offensive attack that forced Quinnipiac goalkeeper Natalia Grodzki (Bartlet, Ill.) to make four saves. Rider also made a change at goalkeeper, substituting Vanessa Perdomo with Bethany-May Howard.

The match remained scoreless until Jessica Fontaine (Enfield, Conn.) volleyed the ball to Shaw, who booted the ball past Howard, giving Quinnipiac a 1-0 lead in the 72nd minute, her first goal this season. Only seven minutes later, the Bobcats struck again as Kiting headed the ball past the keeper, scoring for the second time this year.

“We actually practiced it a lot,” Kiting said. “A lot of set pieces, a lot of corners and things like that because they are so important especially in this game … I just let the ball hit my head and it went in the goal.”

The Bobcats killed the clock, holding off any attempt at a comeback by the Broncs. Their defense won the match, advancing them to a 2-0-1 record in MAAC play.

Kiting credits her team’s non-conference schedule strength to their early conference success.

“I think we had a tough out of conference start to this year,” Kiting said. “We lost a couple of games, had a couple of draws. But we’re still doing the important things right. I think we’ve just brought that into these games now.”

The Bobcats will take on Fairfield on Wednesday, Oct. 2 as they hope to continue their MAAC success.