Pitt women’s soccer drops road match to UMass 2-1

The Pitt women’s soccer team wrapped up a three-game tour of the Northeast with a 2-1 loss against UMass at Rudd Field in Amherst, Massachusetts, on Sunday. The loss was the team’s second of the season, but it was not without is bright spots, as freshman Amanda West scored her sixth goal of the season, extending her scoring streak to four games. No other Pitt freshman has ever scored in each of their first four career games.

West was Pitt’s most active offensive threat, as she got off six shots and put three on goal, leading the Panthers in both statistical categories in addition to scoring the team’s lone goal. That goal came on a penalty kick in the 81st minute and evened the score after UMass forward Melissa Kossler scored in the 32nd minute. But it would not be enough, as Kossler answered with a second score six minutes later, putting UMass up 2-1.

UMass head coach Jason Dowiak was complimentary of Pitt after the game, noting that no team had pressured the Minutewomen so significantly all season.

”Today, we faced an ACC opponent that brought a lot of athleticism, a lot of pressure on us,” Dowiak said of the Panthers during a postgame interview. “We’ve faced a few teams this season that have pressured us really hard, but none quite that hard.”

Pitt led UMass in shots and shots on goal, with 16 and seven to the Minutewomen’s nine and four. In addition, West wasn’t the team’s only standout, as Sydney Marasco also contributed three shots and put two on goal. Anna Bout also had two shots, with one on goal. In total, the freshman trio of Bout, Marasco and West amassed 11 of Pitt’s 16 shots and six of the team’s seven shots on goal.

With the loss, Pitt falls to 2-2-0 on the season. The team will return home to Ambrose Urbanic Field to face Rhode Island on Friday. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.