Utilizing a luxury that hasn't often been available in years past, Colorado College opened its season on a winning note Friday at Stewart Field.
The Tigers, fueled by senior subs Emily Beans and Kelly LaVoie, came from behind to defeat Drake University, 3-2, in the second game of the CC/Fairfield Inn Invitational.
In an earlier game, Washington State University defeated Syracuse University, 4-0.
Neither Beans nor LaVoie, regulars in the lineup throughout their careers, started the later match. But they certainly made an impact off the bench.
Beans entered the contest in the 30th minute, and by the 37:41 mark late in the first half, had scored twice to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead.
Then, after the visiting Bulldogs thought they had forced overtime by pulling even with 10:29 left in regulation, LaVoie knocked in the game winner from close range with just 2:58 showing on the clock.
“We feel this is the deepest we've ever been,” said head coach Geoff Bennett. “And it's nice because, obviously, there's good competition everyday in training. That's just going to make everybody better.
“The key for us now is just getting everybody fit. We've been a little banged up in preseason, so we're just trying to get some people back to a good fitness level.”
Drake, which dropped to 1-2 for the season, struck first when Melissa Lewis launched a rocket from just inside the upper right corner of the box that sailed over the outstretched arms of CC keeper Caitlin Hulyo and inside the far post just 10:41 into the match.
Less than five minutes after subbing into her first competition in nearly a year, Beans got open in front and dribbled to her left before tying the match at 33:26. Less then five minutes later, at 37:41, she pounced on a loose ball in traffic put Colorado College up, 2-1.
“We tried to stick to a plan with her today,” Bennett said of Beans, who moved into fifth place on the program's all-time chart with the 25th and 26th goals of her career. “It's nice to have somebody like her who can come in and run for 10 or 15 minutes against a tired back line. We were fortunate she did that today.”
Junior Tiffany Brown set up LaVoie's tally with a centering pass from outside the left post. Brown also assisted on the first goal by Beans.
The Tigers resume action on Sunday, meeting Washington State at 2:30 p.m. MT, and Bennett expects another tough test from the Cougars.
