Late rally pushes Rams past Waldorf

A late scoring spree carried Cornell to a 4-3 comeback victory over nonconference foe Waldorf Saturday afternoon in Mount Vernon.

Sophomore midfielder Kendra Wisely kicked in the winner for the Rams, who rallied from a second-half deficit with three goals in a span of 11 minutes.

The Rams (4-4 overall) finished the week 1-2, dropping a 6-1 contest on the road to Clarke Wednesday and falling 2-0 at Monmouth Sunday.

Cornell improved its home record to 3-1, all three of the wins decided by a single goal.

A balanced Cornell offensive attack saw six different players contribute a goal or an assist in the Waldorf match, which had the guests ahead 3-1 early in the second half.

Sophomore Chelsea Harris started the comeback, scoring off an assist from Emily Keyser that cut Cornell's deficit to 3-2 at the 60-minute mark. Three minutes later, sophomore Karime Nava registered her first goal of the season on a pass from Harris the pulled the Rams even.

Cornell continued to pressure Waldorf's backline and broke through again in the 71st minute for the winning goal. Senior Rachel Wynn blasted a deflected shot off the goal post, and Wisely was there to chip in the carom - her third goal of the season - that put the Rams ahead to stay.

Freshman Kaci Jazo notched an unassisted goal - her team-leading sixth of the season - in the 21st minute of the first half that tied the score at 1-1.

Cornell controlled the tempo with a 20-7 advantage in shot attempts, eight coming from the foot of Jazo. Freshman goalkeeper Kassi Todryk posted a pair of saves and earned her fourth victory of the fall.

The Rams surrendered two goals in the opening eight minutes in the Clarke loss. Jazo put Cornell on the scoreboard at the 32-minute mark, although Clarke quickly responded with one of its own and took a 3-1 lead into intermission.

Clarke added three goals in the second half, outshooting the Rams 11-2 over the final 45 minutes. Todryk was in on 11 saves for Cornell.

Monmouth prevailed in a defensive battle Sunday, putting up two goals in the first half for the lone points of the afternoon. The Fighting Scots held an 18-10 edge in shots.

Jazo had three shot attempts for Cornell. Todryk collected eight saves at keeper.

IIAC rankings - Cornell's Todryk totaled 21 saves last week, giving her an Iowa Conference-best 55 on the season.

Jazo ranks fourth in the league in goals scored at 0.80 per match. She averages 1.8 points per match, sixth-best in the IIAC. Jazo has scored a goal in five of the team's eight contests this fall.

Coming up - Cornell is back in action Saturday when it hosts Luther for a 3 p.m. kickoff in the IIAC opener for both teams. Cornell is seeking its first win over the Norse since 2007, a 3-2 victory in Mount Vernon.

The Rams wrap up the weekend with a 1 p.m. road tilt Sunday against Iowa Wesleyan.