It was a tough weekend for Cornell’s women’s teams as they rode the long bus back to Ithaca having lost all three of the weekend’s contests to the Lions. First, on Friday, senior Isabel King’s lone goal in the eighth minute of play was good enough for a 1-0 victory in Women’s Soccer. Then, sophomore Denise Dearman led the Lions with eight kills as Volleyball swept the Big Red in three straight sets in Levien. Finally, seniors Gabby Kozlowski and Bridget DeSandis finished off Cornell with a goal each in Field Hockey’s 2-1 victory. At least they’ve got those gorges to get back to, and all imaginable puns that go with it.

Get the full Columbia Athletics round-up below, including the highlights of Football’s heartbreaking loss to Fordham after a touchdown was called back.

Field Hockey (6-2, 2-0 Ivy League):

Results:

Cornell 2-1 (W)
Fairfield 4-3 (W)

Overview: The Lions extended their win streak to five on Saturday and remained undefeated in the Ivy League with a win over Cornell. In the opening period, Columbia got on the board first when senior Gabby Kozlowski scored off a hard pass from fellow senior Paige Simmons. The Lions added to their lead just over seven minutes later with a goal from senior Bridget DeSandis, assisted by freshman Christina Freibott, to make it a 2-0 going into halftime. Despite the lead, Columbia’s defense had their work cut out for them in the second half, as Cornell opened the period with two corners and six back-to-back shots. The Big Red finally got on the board after 55 minutes of play to put them within one. Cornell hit the post once late in the half and missed an open goal off a great defensive play from senior Katie DeSandis as the Lions went on to claim their second straight Ivy League victory 2-1.

Today, the Lions took down Fairfield in another close game, winning their sixth straight, 4-3. Junior Liz Malone tallied a hat trick in the game, including the game winner. Kozlowski opened scoring for the Lions with a goal of her own in the first half.

Up Next: Field Hockey returns to Ivy League play with a game against Princeton at home on Friday at 7 pm.

Volleyball (5-4, 1-0 Ivy League):

Results:

Cornell 3-0 (W)

Overview: The Lions swept the Big Red 3-0 in their Ivy League opener on Saturday at Levien Gymnasium, 25-19, 25-15, 25-22. Columbia built a solid five-point lead early in the first and kept Cornell at a distance for much of the set. After the Big Red drew within three to make it a 20-17 game, seniors Heather Braunagel and Megan Gaughn tallied back-to-back kills to put Cornell out of reach as the Lions went on the win the set, 25-19. The Big Red came out strong in the second set, scoring three unanswered points before the Lions came charging back, tying the game at 9-9 and then taking a commanding lead for the remainder of the second set. The third was a back-and-forth struggle from the start, with both teams taking the lead at various points. For a while, it looked like Cornell might sneak their way back into the game, but Gaughn notched two more kills (as the crowd cheered “Going, Going, Gaughn!”) and the Lions capitalized on some of Cornell’s errors to reclaim the lead late in the set 19-18. From there, the Lions were able to close out the sweep and claim their first Ivy League contest in their third straight win and fourth at home.

Up Next: The Lions face Brown on Saturday in their second Ivy League match at home at 7 pm.

Women’s Soccer (4-4, 1-0 Ivy League):

Results: 


Cornell 1-0 (W)
Army 3-2 (L)

Overview: The Lions held onto an early one-goal lead for over 80 minutes of play to win their third straight and first Ivy League contest of the 2012 season. In one of the first plays of the game, junior Chelsea Ryan found sophomore Erin Falk on a long ball down the left sideline. Falk passed it to junior Natalie Melo, who noticed senior Isabel King flying into the box. Melo set up King with a nice pass, and King buried it first-time in the back of the Big Red goal. The Lions continued to dominate the opening half and held onto the lead into halftime. The second half looked much like the first, with the Lions maintaining control of the game. Cornell had one last chance in the 79th minute, but the shot was saved by sophomore keeper Grace Redmond, who tallied her fourth shutout on the season in the win.

Bwog just got word that Women’s Soccer dropped a close road game to Army, 3-2. Freshman Elly McGuffog and junior Beverley Leon scored for the Lions.

Up Next: Columbia returns to Ivy League action on Saturday at Brown.

Football (1-1):

Results:

Liberty Cup XI
Fordham 13-20 (L)

Overview: The Lions had another exciting and controversial game on Saturday against Fordham, coming up one touchdown short in the end. In the first quarter, Columbia got on the board first with a field goal from junior kicker Luke Eddy, but let the lead slip after a 92 yard Fordham touchdown run followed by an 18-yard touchdown pass. Down 14-3, the Lions struck back when senior quarterback Sean Brackett found junior wide receiver Louis DiNovo for a 60-yard touchdown pass play to cut Fordham’s lead to four. The second quarter saw far less action than the first, but Columbia again cut into Fordham’s advantage with a 24-yard field goal from Eddy. Fordham, however, quickly answered with a 42-yard field goal of their own as the half winded down, giving them a 17-13 lead going into the half. After a quiet third quarter, the Rams added to their lead in the fourth when their kicker booted another field goal, this time 51 yards. Still within a touchdown from Fordham, Columbia advanced to the Fordham 14-yard line with five minutes remaining, but the ball was stripped and the Lions lost possession. Columbia had one final chance late in the fourth quarter when the Lions made their way to the Fordham 28. The Rams blitzed and Brackett evaded the tackle before firing a pass into the hands of junior running back Marcorus Garrett in what could have been the game-tying touchdown. As the fans cheered, the players saw the flag on the play. The referees called back the touchdown saying that Brackett crossed the line of scrimmage before passing in the heartbreaking 13-20 loss.

Up Next: The Lions open the Ivy League season on Saturday at 12:30 pm against Princeton at home.

Men’s Soccer (2-4-1):

Results:

LIU 1-1, 2OT (T)

Overview: The Lions were stunned early on as LIU tallied their only goal of the game just three minutes in on Saturday. Settling into the game, Columbia posted six shots to LIU’s three, but were unable to equalize before the break. In the second half, the Lions came out firing, with two solid chances in the opening minutes, including a header from sophomore Jack Gagne off a corner kick that went just wide. Just minutes later, sophomore Kofi Agyapong fired a shot that was stopped by the keeper, but rebounded to sophomore Andrew Celsus, who drove it into the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1. The score remained even at the end of regulation, sending the game into overtime. Despite a number attempts from both sides, neither team was able to put the game away over two overtime periods.

Up Next: The Lions head to Queens to take on St. John’s on Tuesday before opening the Ivy League season against Brown on Saturday in Providence, RI.

Women’s Cross Country:

Results:

Columbia Places Third at Toledo Bubble Buster

Overview: Sophomore Waverly Neer and freshman Erin Gillingham placed fourth and fifth, respectively, at the Toledo Inter-Regional Bubble Buster in Ottawa Park in Ohio. Overall, the team scored 92 points, which was good enough for third place out of 14 schools and put them ahead of ranked teams like #22 Syracuse and #18 Toledo.

Up Next: The Women’s team will compete in the Metropolitan Championships at Van Cortlandt Park on October 5th, after the Men’s team heads to Lehigh for the Paul Short Invitational this Friday.