PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Plymouth State University women's soccer team tied the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Corsairs, 2-2, in its final Little East Conference (LEC) match of the season on Arold Field Friday evening.
As fate would have it, the draw was the only outcome that would result in both the Panthers and the Corsairs being out of playoff contention at the same time. Each team needed a win to give themselves a chance at securing the sixth and final seed in the LEC tournament.
The Panthers dominated in all but the scoreline, leading in every statistical category, and dictating the run-of-play through most of the 90 minutes. Freshman
Nevaeh Petruzzi (Newmarket, N.H.) put the Panthers ahead in the first half on a great individual effort, beating two defenders before putting a shot into the top corner. Sophomore
Emily Wilson (Salem, N.H.) scored the second Panther goal in the in the 68th minute on a volley served in by classmate
Molly Bellmore (Hebron, Conn.).
Plymouth State ends its season with a 5-8-4 record (1-5-2 LEC), as UMass Dartmouth will also close out 2023, finishing 3-7-7 (0-3-5 LEC) on the year.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 2, UMass Dartmouth 2
- Plymouth State (5-8-4, 1-5-2 LEC)
- UMass Dartmouth (3-7-7, 0-3-5 LEC)
How it Happened:
- The Panthers came out with something to prove, keeping the Corsairs locked in their own half with no hope of getting over midfield.
- Petruzzi received a pass on the left side in the 40th minute, took on two defenders, and bent the ball into the top corner to give the Panthers a 1-0 advantage just before half.
- Plymouth State's dominance continued, as the Panthers held UMD to zero shots in the first half and took the 1-0 lead into halftime.
- UMass Dartmouth tied the game 1-1 in the 66th minute – it was the first good opportunity of the match to put the pressure now on both teams to come away with the crucial win.
- The Panthers wasted no time to retake the lead, as Bellmore connected with Wilson just two minutes later to go up 2-1 with 20 minutes to play.
- With six minutes to go, a Panthers' foul led to a dangerous free kick that the Corsairs would take advantage of. A ball into the box was headed home to tie the game up at 2-2.
- Plymouth State would push numbers forward in the final minutes but could not go ahead for the third time as the match ended in a tie.
By the Numbers:
- Plymouth State outshot the Corsairs 16-5 in the contest.
- The Panthers recorded eight corner kicks to UMD's two.
- Shots on goal were in Plymouth State's favor, 8-3.
- The Panthers are now 20-11-5 head-to-head against the Corsairs dating back to 1990.
- Wilson ends the season scoring points in the team's final four matches.
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