NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Casey MacVeagh (Jr./Thetford, Vt./Thetford Academy) and Thea Traw (So./Portland, Ore./Catlin Gabel) tallied second-half goals as the Carleton College women's soccer team rallied for a 2-1 victory over Luther College in the season opener for both sides.

"I couldn't be more proud of the team today," said Carleton head coach Jessica Mueller. "While we still have some work to do, the players showed a ton of grit. This was a huge team effort. It takes every single player on the field and off to dig in and come from behind against a team like Luther. I really believe in this team and look forward getting a little bit better every day."
 
The Norse (0-1-0) grabbed the lead only 120 seconds into the contest when Maggie Haller brought the ball in from the left wing and passed in front for Rose Sieve to tap the ball into the net.
 
Carleton re-grouped and put sustained pressure on the Luther defense throughout the balance of the contest, ultimately finishing with a 21-4 advantage in shots—including a 10-3 margin in shots on goal—and a 10-1 edge in corner kicks.
 
Two minutes into the second half, Cate Patterson (Sr./Racine, Wis./Prairie School) struck the crossbar with her long-range attempt. The Knights finally broke through in the 51st minute when MacVeah collected a deflected ball at the top of the box and ripped an immediate shot inside far post for her fifth career goal.
 
Carleton notched the game-winner in the 77th minute. Kathryn Kresse (Fy./Woodside, Calif./Crystal Springs Uplands School) sent a corner kick to the far post, and Traw helped the ball across the goal line for her second career goal.
 
While the Knight defense surrendered only one shot in the second half, the Norse put pressure on keeper Keya Mookencherry (So./Winnetka, Ill./New Trier) who turned aside a handful of dangerous crosses.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton travels to Southern California for games at Claremont-Mud-Scripps and University of La Verne on Sunday and Monday, respectively.