As Georgetown midfielder Caitlin Durkee’s free kick from 30 yards out sailed over the hands of goalkeeper Caroline Williams and into the net with 14:44 left in regulation, it seemed that nothing less than a miracle could prevent the Hoyas from closing the books on a 3-0 rout.
And the odds were overwhelmingly in Georgetown’s favor — the Big East powerhouse had only allowed two goals over the entire season and had not allowed an opponent to score three in a game since Oct. 10, 2008 when Notre Dame accomplished the feat.
But don’t tell that to Penn’s Jessica Fuccello.
The senior forward scored three times within a span of 8:23 to highlight an improbable comeback, which, after a scoreless overtime, resulted in a 3-3 draw.
“I think they showed tremendous character and belief in themselves,” coach Darren Ambrose said of his players. “We never stopped battling.”
After being shut out in her last three outings — including during the team’s 0-0 tie with Saint Joseph’s Friday in which Penn took just two shots — Fuccello started off the scoring onslaught with 13:47 remaining when she connected on a Michelle Drugan cross, finding the left side of the net.
But it appeared to be too little too late.
However, Fuccello refused to let her 26th career goal, which moved her to second on the Penn all-time goals list, go to waste.
Less than five minutes later, she brought the game to within one when she redirected a pass from freshman Erin Thayer. The tally bumped her career point total to 61, good for third place in Penn’s record books.
She added the finishing touches with under five minutes to go in regulation, taking advantage of a rare miss hit by goalkeeper Jackie DesJardin — who boasts a .30 goals-against average — by pounding a one-timer into the inside post from point blank.
“I just wanted to keep pressure on the defense and find some openings and luckily I was able to connect,” Fuccello said. “I knew that if we got the ball up top and started moving it around, the opportunities would come.”
Yet Fuccello’s late-game heroics were not the only element to Penn’s comeback.
On the defensive end, the Quakers shut out the powerful Georgetown attack for the final 15 minutes of regulation plus overtime, allowing the game to stay within reach.
“We knew that their front runners were really fast and that their midfielders could play really good balls in,” junior defender Kaitlin Campbell said. “We knew that if we could keep the players in front of us, we would be able to contain them.”
The comeback brought much-needed momentum as Penn embarks on the Ivy League portion of its schedule next week against Harvard.
The scoring outburst jump-started an offense that had only scored two goals in its past three games — including the zero spot it put on the scoreboard Friday night against the Hawks.
“We have a lot of fight in us and we are going to need that in the second half of the season because we’ve got a lot of good games coming up,” Ambrose said. “I think it’s all about character and our kids gained a lot of confidence today.”
