Saint Rose faces familiar foe

Franklin Pierce is 11-time defending region champ

By MATT RYBALTOWSKI, Special to the Times Union


ALBANY -- When the College of Saint Rose women's soccer team took on 11-time defending New England Regional champion Franklin Pierce in an NCAA Division II Sweet 16 match three years ago, the Ravens prevailed 1-0 in an intense affair during a driving snowstorm in New Hampshire.

For today's regional semifinal at Albany Academy for Girls, Golden Knights coach Laurie Darling Gutheil expects a similar contest but with a few slight twists. The perennial powerhouse Ravens, who won four consecutive national titles in the late '90s and are accustomed to playing at home in the postseason, are on the road and staring up at Darling Gutheil's Golden Knights (19-0-2), ranked No. 3 in the nation.

"We've never made it past the Sweet 16 before, so alone that's a great opportunity," senior co-captain Lindsay Bove said. "They've been the ones in the past few years to go on past this region. So that has been one of our goals this year: to get out of this region."

The Golden Knights, the region's top seed, will take on the Ravens, ranked 16th, for the third time in five years with a spot in the Elite 8 on the line. Saint Rose never has defeated the Ravens in postseason play and has only one victory in 16 games between the schools.

The Golden Knights earned that victory last year, a 4-0 romp. The teams played to a scoreless draw on Sept. 1.

Saint Rose is succeeding despite having 10 freshmen on the roster. One reason, players said, is team chemistry.

"It really changed our team. A lot of them are in the starting lineup, and I think we all just came together as a team," senior midfielder Ashley McGuire said. "Just last week we had a pasta party at my apartment; the whole team came over. (Darling Gutheil) likes us to be really close during NCAA time and keep us together as much as possible."

Two freshmen -- Kaitlyn Berry and Kelly Guerin -- were in charge of marking Northeast-10 Player of the Year Gabriela Demoner in the earlier matchup with Franklin Pierce. Demoner, who has 27 goals, is a member of the under-19 Brazilian national team.

"We played two freshmen on her, and they did an excellent job," Darling Gutheil said. "We'll continue to do that. It's just making sure that we defend with a lot of support. They can stay with her from a speed and athletic standpoint."

Darling Gutheil said her team won't have a different approach today, despite being the favorite. She added that avoiding the Ravens' artificial turf surface will benefit her team.

"It's Franklin Pierce regardless if you're the top team or not," Darling Gutheil said. "We're playing home, and we're playing on grass. That helps us a lot in knowing that we can play to our strengths."