MIDDLEBURY, Vt. (November 15, 2019) – Featuring eight all-conference selections and a sweep of the MAC Freedom year-end awards, the Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer team is set for its opening-round matchup with the University of Massachusetts Boston Saturday in the opening round of the 2019 NCAA Division III Championship.
The fixture with the Beacons begins at 1:30 p.m. and will follow the other matchup in the Middlebury, Vermont regional, featuring the hosting Middlebury College Panthers and the University of New England Nor'Easters, which is set for an 11:00 a.m. kickoff. All four teams will be braving the elements throughout the weekend, with temperatures expected to be around 25 degrees around kickoff for the Ducks' match and in the single digits in the overnight hours. The winners of Saturday's fixture meet Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m, where the projected temperature is right around the freezing mark. All three matches will be contested on Middlebury's FieldTurf Field.
The Ducks enter the weekend on a 13-match winning streak after besting both Wilkes University and Misericordia University to win the MAC Freedom Championship at the DeBaun Athletic Complex. The recent run of success is one win short of matching the program's record for consecutive wins (14), which the team matched one season ago with a victory over SUNY Geneseo in the opening round of last year's NCAA Championship. The original record was set from Sept. 4 through Oct. 15, 2005.
Stevens (15-3-1) is making its fifth straight, and 12th overall, appearance in the NCAA Tournament and has compiled an 9-10-2 record over its previous appearances. The Ducks have won at least one match in three of its last four trips to the national championship. It will be the fifth straight season that the Ducks will be facing a first-time opponent in the opening round.
How'd We Get Here
Stevens is making its 12th trip to the NCAA Tournament after topping Misericordia 2-0 in the MAC Freedom Championship. After an unblemished run through the regular season, the Ducks posted consecutive 2-0 results to stop the Cougars' streak of three straight conference championships.
Four different players scored in the conference tournament and junior
Emily Damrell took home the tournament's Most Valuable Player honor after her sterling play in the midfield.
UMASS Boston is making its second trip to the national tournament after winning the program's second Little East Conference Tournament with a 4-0 victory over Western Connecticut State University on Nov. 9. The Beacons are 0-1 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, falling to Ithaca College in 2012.
Offense Wins Games...
Once again, the Ducks enter the tournament with a balanced offensive attack with thirteen players recording at least one goal. Three-time Offensive Player of the Year
Julia Panko leads the way with 13 goals and three assists, while classmate
Gabby Saade has seven goals and seven assists. Sophomore
Ally Wanzor has been a key contributor of late with two goals and an assist over her last five matches. Classmate
Fiona Matthews has also been a key contributor for 20th-year head coach
Jeff Parker, scoring three goals with five assists, while seeing time on the back line and in the midfield.
The Ducks are more than doubling the opponent in shots (402-210), including a 177-80 edge in shots on net. Stevens ranks 23rd in the country with 21.16 shots per game.
...But Defense Wins Ballgames
Stevens has conceded just 13 goals on the year and just two to conference opponents. During its current winning streak, Stevens has pitched nine clean sheets and the team has 10 over the course of the season.
While the team's offensive style tends to force opponents out of system, the back line group of sophomore
Gianna Nitti, the MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Year, juniors
Kaitlyn Casiano and
Erica O'Kelly and sophomores
Nicole Veraja and
Brynn Budka have kept opponents in check when called upon and have held opponents to just 0.68 goals per match.
In goal, sophomore
Izzy DiDario, named to the MAC Freedom's Second Team, ranks 12th in goals-against average (0.373) and eighth in save percentage (0.900).
Breaking Down the Beacons
Under 15th-year head coach Amy Zombeck, the Beacons have posted a program record 19 wins against only two losses, with one draw. The team is riding a two-match winning streak and is unbeaten over its last 17 fixtures since a 2-nil setback at Babson on Sept. 10. The team played Western Connecticut State to a scoreless draw in the regular-season finale on Nov. 2.
Offensively, the Beacons are led by sophomore forward Grace McGettrick, who led the team with 14 goals and two assists, totaling 30 points. Classmate Allie Crawford ranks 21st in the country with 0.57 assists per match in totaling a team-leading 13 assists.
As a team, the Beacons have conceded just 13 goals and rank 30th in Division III with a 0.580 goals-against average. Individually, freshman goalkeeper Maria Spylios has earned 18 of the Beacons' 19 wins, sporting a 0.58 GAA and 0.848 save percentage over nearly 1,900 minutes, while posting 11 of the team's 13 clean sheets. Sophomore Abby McCulloch and senior Miranda Smith have also seen time in goal for the team.
For their collective efforts, five Beacons were recognized by the Little East Conference, with Crawford, McGettrick and sophomore back Dani Anderson landing on the conference's First Team, while Spylios and sophomore Mary Jo Murphy landing on the Second Team. It was the most all-conference selections for the program since the 2014 season. The combined efforts on the pitch led to the program's fifth LEC regular-season title.
On Common Ground
The Ducks and the Beacons share one common opponent in WestConn. Stevens topped the Colonials 2-0 on Oct. 29, while the Beacons went 1-0-1 against their conference rival.
Looking Ahead
On the other half of the bracket, the Panthers enter their matchup with the Nor'Easters with a 13-2-3 record after falling to Amherst in the New England Small College Athletic Conference Championship.
UNE is riding a five-match winning streak after blanking Endicott College 1-0 on Nov. 9 to win the program's second straight Commonwealth Conference Championship.
This will be the first meeting between the programs.
Live stats and video links are available on StevensDucks.com.
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