McClymont, Schuckers Propel Women's Soccer To Stevens Engineering Cup Crown

9/12/2010 12:00:00 AM

HOBOKEN, N.J. (September 12, 2010) – The Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer team captured its sixth-consecutive victory to open the 2010 season with a hard-fought, 1-0, triumph over Kean University in the championship match of the Seventh Annual Stevens Engineering Cup at the De Baun Athletic Complex in Hoboken, N.J. The Ducks, now 6-0-0 on the season, return to action on Wednesday, September 15 against Vassar College, while the Cougars fall to 4-1-1 on the year with the loss.

Stevens, off to their best start since the 2004 campaign, threatened to take the lead early, generating the match's first scoring chance in the fifth minute. Junior Kathleen Schuckers made a run down the left side of the pitch, eluding a pair of Cougar defenders before sending a cross across the face of the goal to senior Katria Misilo on the backpost, but Kean's senior netminder Leandra Russo (Galloway, N.J.) slid over just in time to smother the Ducks' scoring chance.

Russo again came up big in the 19th minute, this time punching a Mary Chew shot over the crossbar to preserve the scoreless tie. Not to be outdone, Stevens' junior goalkeeper Kaitlin McClymont answered the call, less than two minutes later, turning away a Carly Seidel (Winslow Twp., N.J.) free-kick following a Ducks' foul just above the 18-yard box.

Stevens continued to push forward however, firing three shots over the next 10 minutes of action, keeping the pressure on the Cougars before finally breaking through in the 37th minute. Senior Kathryn Stascavage would track down a throughball to the leftside before drawing a foul in the Kean box.

With a chance to put Stevens ahead, Schuckers stepped in to take the penalty kick, and coolly fired the ball into the Cougars' goal to stake the Ducks to a 1-0 edge heading into the locker room.

Hoping to net an equalizer, Kean came out firing to start the second, launching a pair of shots toward the Stevens' net over the first eight minutes of the stanza. The Ducks responded by testing Russo on a pair of shots in the 69th minute, but the Kean keeper again turned Stevens away, keeping the Cougars within striking distance.

Despite Kean's aggressive play, the Stevens defense would keep the Cougar attack at bay for much of the next 15 minutes of action, but Seidel very nearly knotted the score in the 82nd minute when she pushed a shot from above the 18-yard box just over the Ducks' goal following a long run down the left side.

Following a Ducks' foul in the 84th minute, Kean sophomore midfielder Kristen Hager (Spotswood, N.J.) headed a Cougar free-kick off the crossbar that eventually found its way to Cougar freshmen Samantha Kalafor (East Brunswick, N.J.) and Shelby Wallace (Heightstown, N.J.), who each fired a shot, blocked down by the Ducks' backline.

Kean then settled the rebound before drawing a foul in the Stevens box, giving Seidel a chance to tie the game. The Winslow Twp., N.J. native sent the ensuing penalty kick toward the left side of the Stevens net, but McClymont made a diving save to her right, spoiling the sophomore's try on goal.

Seidel would get one final chance to pull Kean even, running down a throughball from junior Lauren Small (Hamilton, N.J.), on the leftside with 1:29 remaining in regulation to creat a one-on-one situation with McClymont near the top of the Ducks' 18-yard box, but the forward slid the shot just wide of the Ducks' net.

Kean finished with a 16-14 shot advantage, outshooting Stevens 10-4 in the second half, while the Ducks held a 5-4 advantage in corners. Chew fired a team-high three shots, while Schuckers, who earned the tournament's Most Outstanding Offensive Player award, netted her third marker of the season on two shots. McClymont finished with four saves on the day, while Small took home the Cup's Most Outstanding Defensive Player honor.

NYU 2, Ursinus 1
New York University wrapped up play at the Seventh Annual Stevens Engineering Cup with a 2-1 victory over Ursinus College. Sophomore forward Erin Haggerty (Medfield, Mass.) put the Violets ahead in the 34th minute, firing an Emily Jenkinson (Concord, Calif.) cross from the rightside of the pitch into the roof of the Ursinus net. Fellow sophomore Serra Tumay (Delray Beach, Fla.) buried NYU's second goal minutes later, placing a shot from above the 18-yard box into the upper lefthand corner of the net, as the Violets earned their second win of the season.

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