BRISTOL, R.I. –  Despite overcast skies, nothing could rain on the Roger Williams University Women's Soccer team's parade at Bayside Field on Wednesday evening, as in their return to the pitch for their first official game since November of 2019, the Hawks easily handled Framingham State University, 3-0. For the many underclassmen, the contest was their first performance in an official collegiate game, but it was the upperclassmen who proved to be the main attraction as junior Bianca Robbins (Johnston, R.I.) scored twice early in the contest, and fellow third-year member Leah Yucius (Duxbury, Mass.) added one later in the victory.
 
For Roger Williams it was their first official game since November 6^th, 2019 and they improved to 1-0 on the season with their ninth consecutive victory over the Rams. In addition, for the Hawks it is their eighth win in their last ten games in nonconference matchups. Meanwhile Framingham State fell to 0-1 on the season.
 
Individually, for Robbins, it was her second career multi-goal game after scoring twice against Lasell College in October of 2019.
 
The Hawks dominated on both ends of the field as they out-shot Framingham State, 19-6 including 11-3 in shots on goal.
 
The Hawks went with a timeshare in net as senior Morgan McCutcheon (Danbury, Conn.) split time junior Sami Brody (Clinton, Mass.) and combined for the shutout. McCutcheon handled goaltending duties in the first half and made one save to get the win and improve to 1-0 on the season before Brody made a pair of saves in the second frame.
 
Jetta Oskirko (Lancaster, Mass.) was in net for the Rams and she held up well making eight saves, but she was ultimately no match for the barrage of shots she faced in the contest as she fell to 0-1 in goal.
 
Hawk Highlights
Bianca Robbins (Johnston, R.I.): 2 goals, 4 shots, 3 shots on goal
Leah Yucius (Duxbury, Mass.): 1 goal, 3 shots, 1 shot on goal
Rachel Oster (Scituate, R.I.): 1 assist, 1 shot, 1 shot on goal
Jordan Powers (Framingham, Mass.): 1 assist
 
Morgan McCutcheon (Danbury, Conn.): 1 saves, 0 goals allowed, 45:00 minutes in goal
Sami Brody (Clinton, Mass.): 2 saves, 0 goals allowed, 45:00 minutes in goal
 
For The Opponents
Megan Ethier (Tyngsboro, Mass.): 2 shots, 2 shots on goal
Cathryn Cooney (Mansfield, Mass.): 2 shots
 
Jetta Oskirko (Lancaster, Mass.): 8 saves, 3 goals allowed, 90:00 minutes in goal
 
How It Happened
The Hawks wasted little time scoring their first goal of the season. In the sixth minute, following a turnover by the Rams in their defensive half, junior forward Bianca Robbins (Johnston, R.I.) gathered a pass from about 30 yards away. She spun off a defender to her right and fired a shot from inside the 18-yard box to the bottom left corner for her first score of the season.
 
Less than ten minutes later, in the 15^th minute, Robbins struck again for Roger Williams. After a well-placed deep chip-in down the left side by second-year midfielder Jen Donohue (Halifax, Mass.), freshman striker Rachel Oster (Scituate, R.I.) corralled the ball on the left side of the six-yard box. She had a two-on-one opportunity and sent a crossing pass to Robbins who fired a shot from just beyond the right post into the net for her second tally of the contest.
 
The lone goal of the second half came courtesy of junior forward Leah Yucius (Duxbury, Mass.). A long through pass found its way to freshman Tayla Salome (Lincoln, R.I.) on the right side of the 18'. She fed the ball in to fellow freshman Jordan Powers (Framingham, Mass.) who was filling the middle and found Yucius cutting across the box from left to right. Yucius then blasted a shot from the top left corner of the six-yard box over the keeper and into the far corner of the net.

Coach's Corner
"It was a cloudy day with a silver lining. We may have lost another player to a injury, a third player could be out for a few weeks, that is not a great start or a great day, we are crossing our fingers that they are all able to get back this season, especially our senior.
 
However, if we put that aside, returning to real college sports is a life changer, life saver, and something we cannot take for granted any more. 
 
We have the potential to achieve very good things this fall if we all stay focused and on the task of winning soccer matches.
 
Over half the team had never played in or been around a collegiate environment. The experience today will gradually pay dividends at the end of the season and at the important part of the soccer calendar.
 
Like most teams, we are not ready to play and fire on all cylinders. We have quite a few players that are still finding their soccer legs again with this being our first competitive match in almost two years.
 
We have the biggest squad ever and this group cannot take things for granted, they need to be accountable for their actions as we are still in a pandemic. Every individual needs to be available at practice, to understand their roles and responsibilities on this team. But more importantly, appreciate this is a program with a proud tradition of excellence, it is a privilege to have been selected to represent this university.
 
We must continue to set the standard and keep the bar high if we want to achieve and sustain success on the soccer pitch as well as in the classroom."

 
What's Next
The Hawks host Rhode Island College for the first game of the Rhode Island Cup on Friday, September 3^rd. Kickoff is set for 4:00 PM.