MARCY, N.Y. – It was a tale of two halves for the SUNYIT Women's Soccer Team on Thursday night against the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF). The Wildcats jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first half, only to watch the Oaks erupt for four unanswered scores in the second to take the victory, 4-1.

In the early going neither team was able to get much going on offense. Amanda Zarek (Massapequa, N.Y. / Farmingdale) delivered SUNYIT's best chance at the time at around the 13^th minute. A lefty kick from outside the penalty box, the ball was headed right for the top shelf before Oaks goalie Olivia Gagliardi was able to tip just enough of the ball to deflect it off the crossbar. The keeper, to her credit, then had the wherewithal to gather the rebound before Abbey Hanehan (Stillwater, N.Y.), charging to the box, had a chance to punch it in.

Finally, in the 35^th minute, the Wildcats got on the board. Amanda Bohne (Cicero, N.Y. / Cicero-North Syracuse) made a spectacular play to set up the goal, running down a pass on the left side before executing a perfect center to Dakota Hanley (Franklin, N.Y. / Franklin Central). Hanley had all kinds of time, gathering the ball before scooting it past the Oak keeper on the right.

Hanley has been on a tear of late after battling injuries early in the season. The junior transfer has scored three times in her last two games.

In the second half – there is no better way to say it – the wheels came off. Brooke Harris evened the score for the Oaks in the 57^th minute, beating SUNYIT keeper Aubrey Campbell (Auburn, N.Y. / Auburn), who got drawn too far away from the goal on the play, allowing Harris to punch it by for the score.

After that, frankly, the Oaks looked more like cheetahs, scoring three more goals in a 7-minute span from the 63^rd to 70^th minute. Try as they might, the Wildcats just couldn't stop the bleeding as an inspired Oak team continued to pound the net, out shooting SUNYIT 9 to 4 in the second half.

The Wildcats – who looked great in the first half – will look to put two halves together in their next match, a home contest with Wells. Game time is set for 1:00 pm this Saturday, and the team will be wearing pink jerseys to support Breast Cancer Awareness month.