CORTLAND, NY – The Cortland women's soccer team opened up State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) action on Saturday afternoon with a 0-0 tie against New Paltz on Holloway Field. The Red Dragons are now 4-2-3 (0-0-1 SUNYAC), while the Hawks are 4-2-2 (0-0-1 SUNYAC).
 
Olivia Rouse (Springfield, VA/West Springfield) recorded three saves in goal for her fourth consecutive shutout for the Red Dragons. Avery Rich (Ilion/Central Valley Academy) recorded two shots on goal, and also cleared a shot off the goal line to prevent a goal. Dana Scruggs (Bethpage), Tyla Vuotto (Lynbrook), and Leah Rehm (East Syracuse/East Syracuse-Minoa) each had one shot on target. 
 
Jess Centeri made five saves in goal for the Hawks, while four different players registered a shot on goal for New Paltz. 
 
Cortland had two shots saved by Centeri in the opening 10 minutes of the contest, a shot by Rehm in the fifth minute and another by Rich in the eighth minute. 
 
New Paltz took until the 27th minute to record a shot attempt, with a shot by Alyssa Deutsch being blocked by Maia Allard (Castleton/Columbia) and a follow-up attempt by Deutsch saved by Rouse with a dive to her right. 
 
Vuotto dragged a shot towards goal in the 49th minute that Centeri was able to easily handle for the Hawks, and just two minutes later, New Paltz had a shot from distance by Deutsch strike off the crossbar. The rebound bounced out to Kennedy Jones, and Rouse made a jumping save on the second attempt to keep the game scoreless.
 
In the 67th minute, the Hawks looked to capitalize on a loose ball in the 18-yard area, but Rich made an excellent defensive play to clear a ball off the goal line for Cortland. 
 
The Red Dragons had a free kick from a dangerous area in the 80th minute after a handball by the Hawks, but Rich's shot floated over the crossbar from 25 yards out. In the 83rd minute, Laney Schmitz fired a shot off the right post for New Paltz. 
 
Cortland had a last chance to win the game with the clock running down in the final seconds, as Gianna Cirilla (Pattersonville/Schalmont) received a pass just outside the New Paltz 18-yard area with under five seconds left. The freshman fired a shot with one second remaining, but the ball did not cross into the goal until after the final horn had sounded and did not count despite protests from fans and players.