The No. 24 SUNY Oneonta women's soccer team edged Denison 2-1 in the second game of the William Smith Invitational today in the season opener for both teams.
 
Oneonta came out strong in the opening five minutes with a pair of shots by junior Amanda Roney (Schoharie /Middleburgh).  Her first shot sailed high in the third minute before her second shot was blocked two minutes later.
 
The Red Dragons finally broke through first when freshman Devyn Kilmeade (Northport/Northport) converted a penalty kick in the 33rd minute.  Kilmeade had just entered the game two minutes earlier.
 
Oneonta wasted no time in grabbing a two-goal advantage when junior Kayla Belush (Earlville/Sherburne-Earlville) scored less than three minutes later.  Belush was in the right place to collect a rebound off the post on a shot by freshman Abby Ousouljoglou (Bridgewater/Bridgewater Raritan Regional), who blasted a shot off the left post before Belush capitalized.
 
Denison's best scoring chance of the first half came with 21:10 on the clock. After a corner, there was a scrum in front of the goal line and Jessica Skelly was able to get a shot off but the goalie Emilie Mull (Marcy/Whitesboro) was there to make the stop.  Mull would finish the game with three saves, as the Red Dragons took its 2-0 lead into halftime.
 
The Big Red cut its deficit to one, taking advantage of a free kick in the 64th minute. Drew Wentzel took the kick from the right side just outside of the box. She placed it perfectly out in front for Anne Denz who drilled a low rolling shot through traffic and into the back of the net.
 
Denison had a couple chances at the equalizer late in the game. With 3:10 to go, Denz drilled a shot from inside the box that was blocked by an Oneonta defender. Then with 26 seconds remaining, Grace Murray put a hard shot on goal, but Mull dove on top of the ball to secure the win for Oneonta.
 
Each team recorded 15 shots in the match. The Red Dragons held a 10-4 advantage in corners.
 
Oneonta will be back in action tomorrow, Sept. 4, when they take on No. 20 Puget Sound at 11 am.