Hoboken, N.J. – The Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer team took No. 6 Misericordia down to the wire Saturday afternoon in a MAC Freedom battle to determine the regular season champion, but an early Cougars goal proved to be the difference in a 1-0 final.
The Ducks finished with a 27-7 shot advantage, but Esabella Mendola was the only player who managed to get one over the goal line during the match.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Mendola put the visitors up early with a goal in the 4
th minute, the first shot of the day for either team.
Stevens goalkeeper
Kenny Donley kept the deficit at one with a pair of saves in the 20
th and 23
rd minute, respectively.
The Ducks mustered just two shots in the opening 29 minutes but picked up the pressure significantly over the final 16 minutes of the first half.
Sophia Murphy,
Sarah Wnorowski (twice), and
Lauren Alley all recorded shots between the 30
th and 37
th minute;
Olivia Castro missed wide right in the 40
th, Wnorowski missed wide left in the 41
st, and Castro hit the crossbar in the 43
rd.
The Red and Gray continued to find opportunities into and throughout the second half.
Gab Aloe, Wnorowski,
Angela Dinh, and Alley all had opportunities denied by Misericordia goalkeeper Lauren Mondor between the 52
nd and 66
th minute.
Wnorowski, whose speed wreaked havoc on the Cougars' backline all afternoon, attempted four shots herself between the 71
st and 76
th minute, then added two more in the 84
th and 87
th – she finished the match with more total shots (10 to seven) and more on-target attempts (four to three) than the entire Misericordia team.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• Stevens' 27 shots were one shy of its season-high (9/7 against Potsdam, 10/26 against Lebanon Valley).
• The 27 shots were 10 more than any Misericordia opponent took during the regular season.
•
Molly McCann and
Angela Dinh each started, finishing the regular season as the only two players to start all 17 matches.
FROM THE FIELD
"I am extremely proud of the effort we put in today. We didn't get the reward that our performance merited but that's why you play the game. We started off poorly but grew into the game. I think from about 20 minutes in the shot count tells the story of the match. We will go again on Wednesday and hopefully we can put in a performance to get Misericordia again next Saturday." -- Head Coach
Stuart Dick
UP NEXT
Misericordia's win means the Ducks will be the No. 2 seed in the MAC Freedom Women's Soccer Championship and will host third-seed DeSales next Wednesday at DeBaun Athletic Complex; the Ducks beat the Bulldogs 4-0 in Center Valley, Pa. on October 12, and have won all six matchups all-time between the two.
