North Andover, MA — Manhattan battled Merrimack to the tune of a 2-2 tie on Saturday afternoon at Martone-Mejail Field. The Jaspers overcame a 4th-minute goal from the Warriors to take a 2-1 lead on a pair of late first-half goals from Amaya Hill and Corrine Jackson. Merrimack delivered the lone goal of the second half when Julia Ostermann found the back of the net in the 64th minute to put the finishing touches on Saturday's tie.
Hill came close to recording her second goal of the day but her shot in the 82nd minute was denied by the crossbar. Hill was heavily featured in the Jaspers attack against the Warriors, also adding an assist to her name on Jackson's goal. Hill and Jackson broke through within 47 seconds of each other to give the Jaspers a 2-1 heading into halftime.
Those were Jackson and Hill's first goals of the season, while Olivia Martuscello contributed the first two assists of her collegiate career. Hill and Martuscello teamed up for double assists on Jackson's scoring play.
Martuscello has battled injuries during her time in Riverdale but is now in the midst of a breakout campaign as a senior. She has played an important role all season with her presence and leadership in the middle of the field, which was further demonstrated on Saturday at Merrimack.
Manhattan was narrowly outshot 14-13, with both teams even at 8-8 in the second half.
The MAAC standings remain tight in the middle. Manhattan is in sole possession of fifth place with 12 points but with five teams only one point back. Following today's tie, Merrimack finds themselves as part of that five-way tie for sixth place. Additionally, Siena holds a five-point cushion over Manhattan for fourth place.
Next Time Out
After two games away from the friendly confines of Gaelic Park, Manhattan will now return home to face first-place Quinnipiac (10-3-1, 8-1 MAAC) at 3 PM on Wednesday. After that, the Manhattan Men's Soccer team will face Quinnipiac at 6:30 PM as part of a Gaelic Park doubleheader. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Follow Manhattan Women's Soccer on Instagram (@jasperswsoc) and X (@JaspersWSOC).
