November 3, 2008

Women's Soccer Championship Semifinalists All Advance With Shutouts



The four semifinalists in the 2008 Northeast-10 Women's Soccer Championship all advanced with shutout victories in the quarterfinals. Top seed Franklin Pierce will host #4 Southern Connecticut at 4 p.m., while #2 Saint Rose will host #6 UMass Lowell at 1 p.m. on Thursday.

#1 Franklin Pierce 5, #8 Saint Anselm


Franklin Pierce's Angelika Johansson broke a 0-0 tie with under left in the first half to give the Ravens a 1-0 lead entering half time. Johansson would score the next two goals of the game for a 3-0 Franklin Piere advantage in the second half. Amanda Panaro tacked on another goal for a 4-0 lead and finally Johansson capped the scoring with her fourth goal of the match at the 83rd minute, her 28th of the season. The Ravens outshot the Hawks 20-6 while holding a 13-2 advantage on corner kicks.

#4 Southern Connecticut 2, #5 Southern New Hampshire 0


After a scoreless first half Southern Connecticut scored the games first goal at the 57th minute. Nicole Burton scored off a penalty kick to give the Owls the 1-0 lead. Mara Primmer scored an insurance goal at the 81st minute off a rebound off the post. The Owls would hold on to the 2-0 victory with a five save performance in goal by Katie DiDio. Stef Young made seven saves in net for the Penmen.

#2 Saint Rose 1, #7 New Haven 0


Saint Rose opened the scoring midway through the first half with a goal from Christina Cuffari to earn a 1-0 lead. The Golden Knights limited New Haven to only five shots, all coming in the second half. Shannon Murphy recorded her fifth shutout of the season in net after pushing away one shot. Saint Rose outshot the Chargers 10-5 and held a 4-0 advantage on corner kicks. New Haven's Kim Taylor made three saves in goal.

#6 UMass Lowell 1, #3 Merrimack 0

After two halves of scoreless soccer and nearly an overtime period UMass Lowell scored first for the sudden victory over Merrimack. Grace Larsen score the game-winning goal, her third of the year, with under a minute remaining in the first overtime period. UMass Lowell's Jamie Gillis turned away nine shots recording her seventh shutout of the season. Merrimack's Shannon Rowan made four saves in net. The Warriors outshot the River Hawks 13-10 and held the advantage in corner kicks, 4-0.