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W Soccer v Yale 7 Kaitlin Campbell D Credit: Michelle Bigony

It might be unlucky to some, but the Penn women’s soccer team has a reason to think twice about the number 13.

After 12 consecutive losses to Villanova, the Quakers finally notched their first victory against the Wildcats Sunday night at Rhodes Field, shutting out their opponents, 3-0.

The victory was even sweeter given that the Penn squad suffered a tough loss to Villanova in the teams’ prior matchup.

“They’re always a tough game,” head coach Darren Ambrose told Penn Athletics. “[Two years ago], we had them down, [but] we couldn’t quite finish it off.”

The first half in this year’s game went much the same as the last, with Penn (1-1) building up its lead and leaving Villanova (2-3) scoreless.

Just 22 minutes in, Penn freshman forward Kathryn Barth netted her first collegiate goal off of a cross from fellow rookie Brianna Rano.

Fifteen minutes later, senior back Kaitlin Campbell sent a free kick toward freshman Christina Hart, who notched Penn’s second goal of the game off of a header that flew past Wildcats keeper Jami Kranich.

With just 3:28 left in the first half, Penn sophomore Erin Beck turned a deflected long shot into Penn’s third goal in as many attempts.

Though the Wildcats would pick up the pace and take seven shots after halftime, the Penn defense maintained its composure and allowed just three shots on goal.

Throughout the match, the Quakers roster put its depth on full display, with the level of play remaining consistent despite the game’s high number of substitutions, a tactic Ambrose said he used because he didn’t think even his fittest player could maintain for a full 90 minutes at this point in the season.

Penn goalie Caroline Williams, who played the entire game, made four saves to earn the shutout win.

The victory was a turnaround from Penn’s first match of the season, a 1-0 loss to Towson on Friday night.

While the Red and Blue held the Tigers (2-1-1) to just one shot in the game’s first half, it was the only shot that Towson would need to earn a victory.

Just 10 minutes into play, Towson junior Annie Hillin earned her first collegiate goal, sending the ball just under the crossbar — and over Williams’ head — from a 30-yard distance.

The Quakers managed to hold Towson to just one more shot on goal for the rest of the game but never managed to tie the contest — despite outshooting the Tigers, 14-6.

Senior Sarah Friedman led Penn’s offensive efforts with three shots, while junior Theresa Yankovich managed two shots on goal. Ultimately, however, Towson goalie Jocelyn Papciak kept the Quakers scoreless, racking up six saves.

The offensive burst from the Penn freshmen bodes well as the Quakers move into next weekend’s Penn Invitational, when they take on local foe St. Joseph’s Friday and Dayton on Sunday.

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