DALLAS, P.A. – The Cortland women's soccer team saw its comeback bid at No. 3 Misericordia fall short in a 3-2 loss on Wednesday evening in non-conference action. The Red Dragons fell to 2-2-2 on the year, while Misericordia improved to 8-0-0.

Tyla Vuotto (Lynbrook) and Haley Loscalzo (East Northport/Commack) each scored a goal for Cortland, with Loscalzo's goal being the first of her career. Kristen Spendal (Dumont, NJ) made a career-high 12 saves in goal for the Red Dragons.

Emma Sweitzer had a goal and an assist for the Cougars, while Alyssa Steenback and Olivia Maniskas both scored a goal apiece. Lauren Mondor made eight saves for the victory.

Cortland got on the board early on the first shot of the game, as Rachael Ehrlich (South Setauket/Ward Melville) sent a cross from a corner into the box. The ball bounced off a defender and fell to Vuotto in the center of the box, and Vuotto sent a left-footed volley into the top right corner of the net to make it 1-0 Cortland. The goal by Cortland also put Misericordia behind for the first time this season.

The lead was extremely short-lived, as the Cougars responded just 20 seconds later with a goal, as Maniskas knocked in a loose ball on a rebound to even the score at 1-1 just than three minutes into the game.

Misercordia scored its second goal of the night in the 31st minute, as Sweitzer tapped in a rebound after Spendal had made a diving stop on the initial attempt. The score remained 2-1 into halftime, with Misericordia holding a 10-8 edge in shot attempts in the first half.

Loscalzo nearly equalized in the 51st minute for the Red Dragons, but her right-footed shot was saved off the crossbar. Less than a minute later, Misericordia added an insurance goal to make it 3-1, as Steenback knocked home a cross from the right side by Sweitzer. Over the next ten minutes, Spendal came up big with three saves to keep the deficit at two for the Red Dragons.

Cortland pushed to get back into the game, and pulled to within a goal in the 65th minute. Off of a long throw in, the ball fell to Loscalzo's feet, who sent a shot with her right foot under the goalkeeper's arm to make it 3-2.

While the Red Dragons continued to press for an equalizer, Spendal stood strong in goal, making four more saves and also having the benefit of a shot go off the woodwork to keep the game within reach. However, Cortland's two shots in the final 11 minutes were saved by Mondor.
 
Misericordia 3, Cortland 2

Scoring Summary (Goals-Assists):
Cortland: Tyla Vuotto 1-0, Haley Loscalzo 1-0
Misericordia: Emma Sweitzer 1-1, Alyssa Steenback 1-0, Olivia Maniskas 1-0

Halftime: Misericordia 2, Cortland 1
Shots: Misericordia 25, Cortland 14
Corner Kicks: Misericordia 3, Cortland 2
Fouls: Misericordia 6, Cortland 3
 
Saves: Kristen Spendal (Cortland) 12 saves (3 GA in 90:00), Lauren Mondor (Misericordia) 8 saves (2 GA in 90:00)
Record after game: Cortland (Red Dragons) 2-2-2; Misericordia (Cougars) 8-0-0 (ranked 3rd nationally in Div. III)