NEW LONDON, Conn. - Coast Guard women's soccer began their season in heartbreaking fashion on Tuesday night. The Bears hosted UMass Boston in their opener, and the ensuing back-and-forth defensive battle was eventually decided by a final-minute penalty in favor of the Beacons.

Both teams took a combined 30 shots, with 11 of Coast Guard's being on-target. Bears sophomore midfielder Ursula Vlases (Bozeman, Mont.) took the first attempt of the night, but her shot sailed just over the crossbar for a miss in the 8th minute. Vlases would try again near the end of the 14th minute, but her shot was deflected by Beacons goalkeeper Julia Cote. Junior forward Mia Forti (Madison, Conn.) followed the deflection with an attempt of her own, but that was stopped by Cote as well.

Another Coast Guard chance came in the 34th minute as first-year midfielder Ella Pottle (Epping, N.H.) let loose a screamer towards the right side of the net. Cote was there for the deflection, and the follow-up by Vlases rang off the woodwork. The Bears made Cote work in the first half, with seven of her 11 total saves coming in the first 45.

Coast Guard got the action going again in the second half as a shot by Forti to the bottom-center of the goal was saved by Cote. Boston had a big chance later an a shot in the box that was deflected by the Bears, leading to a huge corner kick in the 61st minute. The Beacons were unable to capitalize the on the chance, however, as Bears senior goalkeeper Emily Scharnitzky (Charleston, S.C.) saved a volley to the bottom center. Scharnitzky would go on to finish the match with five games.

The Bears tried to strike again in the 76th minute when Ursula Vlases tried a long shot near the bottom left corner of the box. Cote deflected the shot as it aimed towards the center of the net, and the attempt by junior midfielder Arwen Wise (Weatherford, Tex.) would miss high.

It was looking as thought the game would end in a draw until the referees whistled a foul on Coast Guard in the 90th minute inside the Bears own penalty area, leading to a massive penalty kick for Boston. While most the fans in attendance made their displeasure with the call know, Boston's Georgia Bonney lined up her shot and buried it in the back of the net, putting the Beacons up with just 24 seconds to go. The Bears would try to score a last-second equalizer, but Boston stifled the comeback to claim their second win of the season.

Coast Guard took seven corner kicks over the course of the match and committed 12 fouls while Boston was called for only four.

Women's soccer will be back in action on Saturday afternoon at 1 PM as they take a long road trip to Pennsylvania to face DeSales University. The Bulldogs are 0-3 to start their season with their most result result being a 5-0 loss to Dickinson College.