Sophomore steals spotlight on Senior Night

By Wes Shaw, staff writer
Posted on November 1, 2007

On Madison’s Senior Night, it was a sophomore that stole the spotlight and led her team to victory in Colonial Athletic Association soccer. Forward Corky Julien scored twice as the Dukes defeated Towson 3-1 in their final regular season home game, improving their record to 15-2-1 on the season.

Julien’s two goals would be the most important of the contest. The first tied the match at 1-1, and the second proved to be the game winner, coming with just eight minutes remaining. Teresa Rynier added a third goal for Madison in the 90th minute, but by then the game had already been decided.

Madison went down early after a penalty kick goal from Towson senior Alison Reinhart in the 21st minute. A disputed foul call in the box gave the Tigers a penalty kick and Madison’s Melanie Schaffer a yellow card. Reinhart’s free kick was nearly stopped by JMU goalie Stephanie Poucher, as the ball bounced off her fingers and into the net.

Madison did not trail for long, as Julien notched the equalizer in the 31st minute. Senior Annie Lowry’s shot on a wide-open net was blocked by a Tigers defender and rebounded by freshman Cate Tisinger. Tisinger then found Julien on the left side of the box, who scored from five yards out.

“It was a combination play and the ball got to me. I just put it in,” Julien said.

Julien’s second goal was the difference in the contest, putting the Dukes up 2-1 in the 82nd  minute. Julien scored from 10 yards off a through ball from Jess Remmes, who was fed by Lowry. Both were credited with an assist on the play.

“The good thing about tonight was that we stepped it up as a team. We played with heart and everyone was working together,” Lowry said. “Seeing an underclassman sending our seniors out on a good note was good too.”

The victory ensures Madison will control its own destiny when it travels to VCU for its regular season finale Thursday. A win will give the Dukes a first-place finish in the CAA and a first-round bye in the conference tournament.

“Thursday is still a big game for us even though it’s the last game of the season,” coach Dave Lombardo said. “We already know we’re going to the CAA tournament in some capacity, but we’re not looking past that right now.”

A win Thursday will also guarantee that this year’s team will finish the season at least tied for having the most wins in a season in JMU women’s soccer history. The most successful team in school history finished with 16 victories, but four of them came in postseason play.

If the Dukes are able to lock up a first-round bye in the CAA tournament with a win Thursday, Tuesday’s win would be Madison’s final home game this season. It would also be the final game in Harrisonburg for the six seniors, led by last year’s Female Scholar Athlete of the year, Lowry.

She has earned virtually every honor and award possible at Madison, accumulating 27 goals, 15 assists and 11 game winners in her career.

“She’s the kind of player the other team’s defenses have to respect. She draws single coverage, double coverage, and man marking all over the field, and she still finds a way to impact the game,” Lombardo said. “It may not necessarily be scoring a goal, or getting an assist, but it opens things up for somebody else to do it. We’re going to miss having her here next year.”