In their first home game of the season, the Rowan women’s soccer team put up a convincing 3-0 win over Babson.

The star of this game was Julianna Giordano. In addition to her typical great defense, she shined on the offensive end.

On a ball that was heading out of bounds, the Babson goalie came out of goal to try to get to it. Giordano came running down and slid once the goalie got to the ball, crossing it over to freshman Angela Oliveto, allowing her to score an easy goal.

“In the moment, I was not even really expecting to get the ball,” Giordano said. “I was expecting to make that run, and when I slid, I closed my eyes and hoped for the best. I didn’t really know what was going to happen next, but working hard always puts you in the best spots.”

Rowan’s head coach, Scott Leacott, is always impressed with how Giordano plays.

“She never quits on anything until either that ball is out, or basically until she’s dead,” Leacott said. “That’s the mentality of the [Giordanos], they are gonna fight until the end. She made a lot of things happen today with just her ability to never quit.”

Not to be lost on that play was Oliveto, who scored her first collegiate goal.

“It was an amazing feeling,” Oliveto said. “It was a little nerve-racking when I first went in. Playing at Smith and in our scrimmage, I knew I could bury the hatchet when I got the ball.”

Giordano also scored the third and final goal of the game in the second half on an unassisted goal.

Mackenzie Clement scored the first goal of the game on a penalty kick during the first period of play. This is Clement’s second penalty goal of the year.

“We struggled with PKs last year, and now we finally have someone to do that for us,” Leacott said. “After she scored last game with a penalty kick, there was no question about who we were going with in that spot.”

Last season, the Profs converted two of four penalty kicks. This year, after two games, they have already matched last year’s total. If they can keep earning those penalty kicks, it seems like Clement will be their go-to.

On top of the two penalty kicks she has scored, Clement has been putting her teammates in good positions to score throughout the season, even if the numbers do not show it yet.

“She is getting into the rhythm right now,” Leacott said. “Clement is taking on more of a distributing role this year, rather than trying to take people on and score herself. She is putting people in really good spots; we just have to start finishing.”

Rowan was dominant on the defensive side of the ball, shutting out Babson. Calista Burke had a strong game, to no one’s surprise. The backline returns three of its four starters: Giordano, Manon Bada, and Meghan Kryjer. The one player not returning is last year’s team captain, Emma DeMaise. Freshman Makala Baker got the start but got hurt in the middle of the game, which brought in another freshman, Cali Sloan. Both had strong showings.

“We have two new freshmen who are both extremely hardworking and are going to help fill the role that Emma had,” Giordano said. “I think the backline has a big future ahead.”

The Profs’ next game is on the road against Swarthmore. Last year, Rowan tied at home against Swarthmore, with both Juliana Giordano and Olivia Giordano scoring goals. This year, the team will be trying to pick up the win on the road.

“We are going to keep it up; we are not planning on losing any time soon,” Oliveto said.

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