Women's Soccer Tops Elms, Stamps Ticket to NECC Title Game
NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College women's soccer team scored two first-half goals en route to a 2-0 victory over Elms College in the semifinals of the NECC Championship on Thursday afternoon at Alumni Field.
Freshman Caley McClendon netted both goals for the Mariners. Mitchell (9-7-1 overall) advances to the title game for the second straight year and will play at top-seeded Lesley University on Saturday, November 6 at 4 p.m.
The Mariners got on the scoreboard in the 25th minute when junior Angie Smith dumped a ball into the corner where classmate Leslie Briggs tracked it down. Briggs then crossed the ball to the far post where McClendon was waiting. She brought the ball to the ground with her body and quickly deposited a shot into the back of the net to give Mitchell a 1-0 advantage.
Just over five minutes later, Briggs took a shot from close range that Elms goalkeeper Hayley Zisk deflected but couldn't control. McClendon was there to clean up the rebound and gave the Mariners a two-goal cushion with her 11th tally of the season.
McClendon nearly made it a hat trick in the 38th minute, but Zisk made an incredible save with her leg to deny the attempt. The Blazers had chances of their own in the half, putting four out of five shots on goal, but Mitchell goalkeeper Kaylee Woodford stopped every one.
The Mariners took the 2-0 lead into the halftime intermission and protected the margin in the second half. Despite being the aggressor with nine shots in the stanza, the Blazers could not finish on their scoring chances. Elms pushed everyone forward for the final 10 minutes but didn't get anything past Woodford, who finished with eight saves to record her sixth shutout of the year.
The Blazers held a 14-13 edge in shots and a 5-2 advantage in corner kicks. Zisk finished with six saves in goal. Elms ended its season with an overall record of 9-10-0.
Lesley advanced to the title game by virtue of a 3-2 edge in penalty kicks against Daniel Webster College on Thursday night. Saturday's contest will be a rematch of last year's title game which the Lynx won 3-1. However, the stakes will be raised this year as the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship will be up for grabs.
