Playing against its third top-10 opponent in four games, the Washington University women’s soccer team defeated previously undefeated No. 4 Carnegie Mellon University 1-0 behind a smothering defensive effort on the road Saturday.

Junior defender Sam Ezratty headed a goal into an open net off a rebound in the 62nd minute to give the Bears their first University Athletic Association victory of the season.

Mary Richardson | Student Life

Junior forward Abby Starker chases the ball against Wheaton College on Sept. 27. The No. 2 Bears defeated No. 4 Carnegie Mellon University 1-0 in a conference game on Saturday.

Saturday’s victory wrapped up a grueling stretch of schedule for the Bears, who played against No. 10 Wheaton College, No. 5 Emory University and No. 4 Carnegie in the past two weeks. In those games, the Bears tallied a 1-0-2 record to remain unbeaten on the season (10-0-2 overall).

The first half against Carnegie was rather uneventful as the bulk of the game took place in the midfield. Although neither side was able to record a single shot, there were still a few scoring chances for each team, but none of the opportunities came to fruition inside the box.

“There were a lot of dangerous opportunities in front of the net that just didn’t escalate into shots. There were crosses or through balls that barely rolled out of bounds,” head coach Jim Conlon said. “It was an up-and-down battle where, somehow, the keepers didn’t have to field a shot on goal. It was an extremely high-level match in the middle of the field.”

The second half saw both teams begin to break through the backlines and establish an offensive rhythm. In the 62nd minute, senior forward Lillie Toaspern took a free kick from the right side that was saved by the Tartans’ goalkeeper and deflected off the top of the crossbar, but Ezratty was there to head in the rebound and give the Bears a 1-0 lead.

It was Toaspern’s team-leading ninth assist of the season and Ezratty’s second goal. Conlon commended Ezratty’s effort this season as primarily a bench player, though she has started three games this year.

“Sam [Ezratty] has been a great player. We knew she was going to have a great junior year, and we’ve asked her to do lots of different things, like playing different positions in the defense and getting herself set up for set pieces where she’s been dynamic in the air,” Conlon said.

In general, Ezratty’s goal was representative of a more action-packed second half for both defenses.

“I think both teams started settling in, and the game opened up and that allowed more space. Once there was more space, the forwards were able to get themselves in goal-scoring positions, and obviously we took advantage of a foul to get our free kick goal,” Conlon said.

The Bears’ defense held on for the shutout and avoided repeating what happened in last week’s 1-1 draw against Emory, when the Red and Green allowed a goal just 32 seconds after scoring one of their own. While the Tartans outshot the Bears 6-5 overall, the Bears sent three shots on goal and were able to limit Carnegie’s high-octane offense—which averaged three goals per game before Saturday—to just one shot on goal.

“We were able to play really good team defense. Everybody really worked together and communicated, and we just stayed tight and focused the entire game,” Ezratty said.

With the win, the Bears are now a perfect 6-0 on the road compared to a 4-0-2 record at home. Ezratty attributed the Bears’ road success to the team’s ability to ignore potential distractions and stay focused on the game at hand.

“Everybody is really focused and tuned in all the time. It doesn’t really matter if it’s a home game or an away game; we play at the same level no matter what,” Ezratty said. “Despite taking two planes or being out of your comfort zone in a hotel, everyone’s brought their 100-percent effort to every game.”

Next weekend, the Bears play two more UAA road games, against Case Western Reserve University (0-2 UAA record) on Friday and the University of Rochester (1-1 UAA) on Sunday.