UMBC Women’s Soccer Battles Back for 2-2 Draw Against West Chester
The UMBC women’s soccer team remained unbeaten to start the 2026 season, battling back from a second-half deficit to earn a 2-2 draw against West Chester on Sunday at Retriever Soccer Park.
Playing in front of a record crowd of 2,800 fans, the Retrievers improved to 3-0-1 through their first four matches. UMBC controlled much of the afternoon offensively, finishing with an 18-10 advantage in shots and putting seven attempts on goal.
Rubin Strikes Early
UMBC could not have asked for a much better start.
Just over two minutes into the match, sophomore midfielder Zoe Brossman drew a foul outside the West Chester penalty area. Senior defender Regan Rubin stepped up for the ensuing free kick and delivered one of the highlights of UMBC’s young season.
Rubin launched a strike from approximately 25 yards that found the upper-left corner of the net, putting the Retrievers ahead 1-0 at the 2:05 mark. It was Rubin’s first goal of the season.
West Chester responded quickly.
Lauren Reimold sent a long service forward, where Adriana Ryder gained possession near the penalty area. Ryder worked her way through the UMBC defense and placed a low shot into the bottom-right corner to tie the match at one in the 10th minute.
The Golden Rams then turned the match around in the 28th minute. Ryder helped create another opportunity, sending a short cross into Abigail Hanemann. Hanemann collected the ball in the middle of the box, turned and fired into the lower-right corner to give West Chester a 2-1 advantage.
UMBC entered halftime trailing despite scoring almost immediately after kickoff.
Retrievers Respond in Second Half
Instead of allowing the first-half momentum shift to take over the game, UMBC came out aggressively after halftime.
The Retrievers outshot West Chester 11-4 over the final 45 minutes and spent extended stretches putting pressure on the Golden Rams’ defense.
That pressure finally produced the equalizer in the 66th minute.
Senior defender Reagan Casper started the sequence with a pass from midfield before Payton Foster found Brossman moving into the attacking area. Brossman was taken down inside the penalty box, resulting in a penalty kick.
Brossman stepped to the spot and calmly converted into the lower-left corner, tying the game 2-2 with 24:33 remaining. The goal was Brossman’s second of the season.
Brossman played a role in both UMBC goals, drawing the foul that led to Rubin’s free-kick goal and later scoring the equalizer herself.
UMBC Nearly Finds the Winner
The Retrievers did not settle for the draw.
Freshman forward Brooke Clagett generated two dangerous opportunities late in the match after making runs into the West Chester penalty area. Fellow freshman Jorda James nearly produced the go-ahead goal as well, narrowly missing after connecting with a cross from sophomore Leen Jawhar with approximately nine minutes remaining.
UMBC ultimately could not find the third goal, but the statistics reflected how much pressure the Retrievers created.
UMBC finished with an 18-10 advantage in total shots and a 7-4 edge in shots on goal. West Chester goalkeeper was forced to make five saves, while UMBC goalkeeper Amara Codd recorded two. West Chester held a 2-1 advantage in corner kicks.
The second-half numbers were especially encouraging. UMBC outshot the Golden Rams 11-4 after halftime while holding West Chester scoreless over the final 45 minutes.
Unbeaten Start Continues
Sunday’s result continued an impressive opening stretch for head coach Rick Stainton’s Retrievers.
UMBC began the season with a 3-1 victory over Mount St. Mary’s before defeating American 2-1 and Fairmont State 5-3. The draw against West Chester moved the Retrievers to 3-0-1 through four matches.
That represents an encouraging continuation of the progress UMBC showed last season. The Retrievers entered 2026 looking to build upon a six-win 2025 campaign that included two America East victories, their best overall win total since 2016.
UMBC has also shown plenty of offensive ability early this year. Through four matches, the Retrievers have scored 12 goals while finding the back of the net at least twice in every contest.
More importantly, UMBC has demonstrated that it can win games in different ways. The Retrievers have played from ahead, survived high-scoring contests and now shown the ability to respond after falling behind.
Against West Chester, UMBC faced its first halftime deficit of the young season and found a way to avoid its first loss.
Tough Schedule Continues
UMBC’s early-season schedule was intentionally constructed to test the Retrievers before America East play begins.
The West Chester match was the fourth game of a season-opening five-match homestand at Retriever Soccer Park. UMBC next hosts St. John’s on Aug. 27 before traveling to Delaware for its first road match of the regular season on Aug. 30.
The Retrievers will later host Towson and Wagner before road games against Robert Morris and Longwood complete the nonconference schedule. America East play begins Sept. 20 at Vermont.
MSB Take
UMBC probably would have preferred three points after controlling much of the second half, but this is a draw the Retrievers can feel good about.
After surrendering two unanswered goals and falling behind 2-1, UMBC did not panic. The Retrievers took control after halftime, generated chances, earned the tying penalty and continued pushing for the winner until the final whistle.
Brossman continues to emerge as an important piece of the UMBC attack, while Rubin gave the Retrievers another scoring option from the back line. It was also encouraging to see freshmen such as Clagett and James involved in dangerous late opportunities.
The biggest number, however, may have been 2,800.
Drawing a record crowd to Retriever Soccer Park while the program is off to a 3-0-1 start gives UMBC a chance to build some legitimate momentum around women’s soccer in Baltimore.
Four games into the season, the Retrievers are unbeaten, scoring goals and showing resilience when things do not go their way. That is a strong foundation as the schedule becomes increasingly difficult.
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