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Women's Soccer Advances to Title Game with 3-2 Win at Elms
Box Score
CHICOPEE, Mass. - The Mitchell College women's soccer team earned
its first-ever trip to the NECC title game with a 3-2 victory at
second-seeded Elms College on Thursday night in the semifinals of
the 2009 NECC Championship.
The third-seeded Mariners (8-10-0 overall), who will face
top-seeded Lesley University in Saturday's title game, fell behind
2-1 early in the second half. A goal by sophomore Nikki Hoxie tied
things up in the 53rd minute, and the game continued on without a
goal until the final minutes.
Just when the game seemed destined to go into extra time, the
Mariners were awarded a free kick in the 88th minute. Freshman
Kaitlyn McGinn took the kick and sent a ball to the far post, where
an Elms player tried to clear it away with a header but instead put
it in her own net. The own goal put Mitchell up 3-2 with 2:17
remaining in the contest.
"We stuck to our game plan all night long and never panicked," said
head coach Damian Houlden. "At the end, we created an opportunity
and were fortunate that things worked out the way they did. I'm
extremely proud of my team and the way they handled themselves
tonight. They deserve the chance to play for the championship."
Mitchell made the most of its chances all game long. The Blazers
(9-9-1 overall) held a 20-5 edge in shots and a 12-0 advantage in
corner kicks. Sophomore goalkeeper Brittany O'Neil made four saves
to keep the Mariners in the game.
The first score of the game came in the 32nd minute when Mitchell
capitalized on good ball movement inside the 18-yard box that
resulted in a goal from sophomore Leslie Briggs on a pass from
McGinn. It was Briggs' third goal of the postseason and eighth of
the year.
The Blazers quickly responded just over three minutes later when
freshman Cassandra Tetrault found senior Serina Percoski with a
corner kick that Percoski was able to punch into the net to even
the score at 1-1 at the 34:50 mark. Elms then forged ahead five
minutes into the second stanza when senior Krystyna Gagne passed
the ball to sophomore Jen Killion who struck for the fifth time
this season, giving the Blazers a 2-1 advantage.
Mitchell answered three minutes later when sophomore Angela Smith
delivered a pass to Hoxie, who was streaking up the right side of
the field. Hoxie blasted a shot into the lower right corner of the
net, knotting the game at 2-2 with her team-leading 14th goal of
the season.
The Mariners will play for the conference championship on Saturday,
November 7 at Lesley (14-4-1 overall). The Lynx, who advanced to
the finals with a 3-0 win over Becker College on Thursday night,
have won their last six games. Kickoff for Saturday's game is
scheduled for 1 p.m.