HOBOKEN, N.J. (September 28, 2019) – Sophomore
Fiona Matthews' shot trickled across the goal line in the 108th minute to send RV/RV Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer over previously unbeaten No. 13/13 Arcadia University 1-0 in double overtime Saturday in a non-conference fixture at the DeBaun Athletic Complex.
With the teams seemingly headed for a draw in what is believed to be the first meeting between the programs, senior
Julia Panko sent a long ball down the pitch that ran parallel to the near sideline.
Classmate
Gabby Saade corralled the pass just to the right of the 18-yard box. She stopped, changed directions, and then turned on the left shoulder of the 2018 MAC Commonwealth Rookie of the Year, Brianna Crowley. Crowley thwarted Saade's initial move forward and forced the senior to retreat a few steps outside the 18 to recoup possession. Saade then sent a ball towards the center of the box, where sophomore
Ally Wanzor touched it in midair over to Matthews.
Mattews, who opened scoring against Vassar on Sept. 24, collected the ball and turned, taking a right-footed shot towards the net. Arcadia's
Brianna Williams appeared to believe the ball was struck harder than it actually was and dove hard to her left, however, the ball simply rolled behind the goalkeeper into the net to send a flock of Ducks onto the field in celebration. The marker was Matthews' third of the year and just the third allowed by the Knights this season over 11 matches.
Sophomore
Izzy DiDario made four saves to post her first clean sheet of the season for the Ducks, won their third straight to move to 5-3-1. Williams was credited with two saves for Arcadia, who dropped to 9-1-1.
The victory was Stevens' first overtime triumph in the regular season since topping Babson 2-1 on Sept. 9, 2017 and the program's first regular-season win over a ranked opponent since besting then-No. 3 Messiah 2-1 on Sept. 3, 2016. The Ducks have earned recent victories both in overtime and over ranked opponents in the postseason.
Inside the Numbers
- Stevens held a slim 16-14 advantage in shots, with each side registering four shots on frame. Each team also took three attempts in overtime. Wanzor and Panko each took three shots to lead Stevens, while Megan Mannato fired off three attempts to lead Arcadia.
- Arcadia's Kayla Murphy stopped freshman Catalina Abusada's try in the 32nd minute, bailing out Williams, who had only deflected the Berkeley Heights, New Jersey native's scoring attempt. The ball appeared to be headed towards the net, but Murphy swatted the ball out of danger.
- Arcadia earned six corners, while the Ducks earned five.
- A physical affair at times, the teams combined for 28 fouls and five yellow cards.
- With an assist on the game-winning goal, Saade extrended her point streak to four.
Unsung Heroes
From the Sidelines (Head Coach Jeff Parker)
- "Excellent overall performance from our group this afternoon. [We] had to dig down, find a way through and stay together against a very solid Arcadia side. [A] very important result at this point of the season and we will have to make the necessary improvements to be ready for MAC Freedom play with Misericordia on Saturday."
Up Next
- RV/RV Women's Soccer heads to Dallas, Pennsylvania for the MAC Freedom opener against RV/Misericordia University on Oct. 5.
- It is believed to be the first meeting between the programs.
- Links for live stats and video are available on StevensDucks.com.
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