NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. - Each of the
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth's women's soccer tri-captains
scored a goal Saturday afternoon to lead the Corsairs to a 3-0
victory over Plymouth State University in a Little East Conference
match at the UMass Dartmouth Athletic Complex.
The Corsairs, 4-7-4 overall and 2-2-2 in the Little East, clinched
a berth in the LEC Tournament for the first time since 2004.
PSU, 5-6-4 overall and 1-4-1 in the conference, remains alive in
the hunt for an LEC post-season berth despite the setback.
Junior Karla Ellis (Wilmington, Mass.) scored the game's first goal
at the 11:45 mark after taking a pass from senior Sarah Killingbeck
(Norton, Mass.) in a two-on-one situation. It was Ellis'
first goal of the year.
The following 54 minutes of the contest were played to a scoreless
standstill. After that time had elapsed, the Corsairs took
full command of the match by scoring two goals in less than four
minutes. Senior Jessica Swenson (Salem, Mass.) scored on a sprint
from the right side of the net at 66:11, and Killingbeck tacked on
a backbreaking third goal by simply tapping the ball home into an
empty net after a misplay at 69:44.
UMD had a stifling defensive effort by defenders Kelsey Boothby
(Holbrook, Mass.), Kaitlyn Duarte (New Bedford, Mass.), Nichole
Hoffman (Stoughton, Mass.), and Michaela Blackham (Weymouth,
Mass.). The Panthers mustered just five shots on the
afternoon, only three of which had to be saved by sophomore
goalkeeper Tanya Braga (Hudson, Mass.) for her third shutout of the
season.
The Corsair victory, coupled with UMass Boston's 4-1 defeat at the
hands of Keene State moves the Corsairs into sole possession of
fourth place in the Little East. As a result, the Corsairs
control their destiny for home field in the first round of the
conference tournament; a victory next Saturday over Eastern
Connecticut would guarantee a tournament home game.
The Corsairs will return to action when they visit Worcester State
next Tuesday evening. PSU will visit Fitchburg State Tuesday
for a 7:00 p.m. non-conference contest., and wraps up the regular
season next Saturday with a key LEC match at UMass
Boston.
(Courtesy of UMass Dartmouth Sports
Information)
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