Bella Romano Interview |
Head Coach Jeff Parker InterviewHoboken, N.J. (September 20, 2014) – The Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer team earned a 3-1 win over Utica College in the Empire 8 opener for both school's Saturday.
With the win, Stevens improves to 4-3 overall and 1-0 in the conference, while the loss drops the Pioneers to 4-2-1 and 0-1 in the Empire 8.
From the opening tap, Stevens dominated the action, taking 10 shots – five on goal – in the first 15 minutes, eventually getting a 1-0 lead when sophomore forward
Raba Nasif (Northvale, N.J.) scored her team-high sixth of the year. On the play, senior midfielder
Mariah Cleveland (Los Gatos, Calif.) hit Nasif in-stride inside the 18-yard box with a perfectly delivered through-ball.
Shy of eight minutes later, the lead moved to two goals when sophomore midfielder
Kristen Goncalves (Dix Hills, N.Y.) was able to track down a loose ball after a thwarted breakaway, and then went on to bury her bid inside the right corner for her second marker of the season.
Junior
Carly Bean (Williamson, N.Y.) was able to get her first of the season in the 32nd minute when Nasif crossed from the right end line to Bean on the left side of the box. The latter controlled the cross and calmly drilled her shot into the upper-right corner.
The lead could have been more, but Pioneer goalie
Kelly Heimerle (North Babylon, N.J.) made 11 saves, several of the spectacular variety, to keep Utica within three.
Despite being outscored 1-0 in the second half, Stevens controlled the action, field position and possession throughout. The Ducks held a 9-3 edge in shots and a 2-0 advantage in corners during the period, and closed the game with a 32-4 lead in shots and a 7-1 margin in corners.
Freshman
Lindsey Mahnken (Bayville, N.J.) started the game in goal for Stevens to earn the win (4-2), with junior
Evelyn Ting (Gaithersburg, Md.) coming on to play the second half. Heimerle – peppered with shots all day – made 14 saves in the loss for Utica.
Nassif led the Ducks with three points on the afternoon, with 13 players getting off shot attempts, three scoring goals and a total of four recording points.
The Ducks will take to the road for a non-conference showdown with in-state rival Drew University Wednesday night at 7 p.m. The Ducks will visit Empire 8 rival Elmira College next Saturday before returning home on September 30 against Eastern University.
