By Tiffany Williams –
WPI made the most of its first-half chances and slammed the door on defense, blanking UMass Dartmouth 2-0 Wednesday night at Cressy Field.
Abigail Johnson (Middletown, CT) and rookie Madisen McLeod (Ledyard, CT) provided the offense, each scoring before halftime to push the Engineers to 3-2-1 on the season. The Corsairs dropped to 2-4-1.
Johnson’s opener came in the 18th minute after a sharp sequence up the right side, finishing off a through ball from Madison Shaw (Cheshire, CT) with a strike that clanged off the left post and in. McLeod doubled the lead three minutes before the break, intercepting a pass near the back line and drilling home her first career goal.
The Engineers peppered Dartmouth with 23 shots, 12 on frame, and held a 4-2 edge in corners. The Corsairs managed just seven attempts, three on target.
Goalkeepers Ayla Verheul (Naarden, Netherlands) and Maya Mussel (Oxford, CT) split duties, combining for three saves and WPI’s third clean sheet of the year. Marina Cassano (Bloomfield, CO) and Tori Russo (Milford, MA) teamed up for 10 stops in net for Dartmouth.
Both sides are back at it Saturday at 1 p.m. — WPI returns home to face Clark in NEWMAC play, while UMass Dartmouth heads to Keene State for a Little East matchup.