News
Soccer Stuns Saint Joseph’s, 1-0, Advances to Championship Game
Date Posted: Thursday, November 05, 2009
Posting Categories: Athletics News
Anna Bolton '12 locked up the Sharks victory with her goal on Wednesday. ©Risley Sports Photography.
November 5, 2009
Simmons Soccer (11-5-3, 7-2-3 GNAC) knocked top seed Saint Joseph's Maine (12-6-2, 9-1-2 GNAC) out of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Tournament in the semifinal round, 1-0, on Wednesday afternoon. The fifth-seeded Sharks received a goal from sophomore Anna Bolton (Amherst, N.H.) in the 24th minute of play and will advance to the GNAC Championship.
Bolton's tally came at the 23:32 mark off a right-to-left crossing pass from junior Lindsey Butler (South Weymouth, Mass.). Bolton, standing in the box unmarked, shot the ball to the top right corner beyond Monks keeper Katye Mayo's reach.
SJC’s Jessica Needham nearly tied the game in the 32nd minute of play, but Simmons senior goalkeeper Rachel Elliott (Amherst, N.H.) stonewalled the senior to preserve the Sharks' one-goal lead. Jennifer Keaney set up the attempt and Needham, at the 18, belted a drive toward the left corner, but Elliott came up with a diving stop.
Five minutes later, Simmons junior forward Anna Stella (Sharon, Mass.) nearly broke free on a bouncing lead pass up the middle of the field. The SJC keeper gambled by leaving her net, but made a sliding grab to deny Stella the ball at about the 18-yard mark. Plenty of midfield play followed, as neither team came up with a quality scoring chance for the next 40 minutes.
The lull was broken by one of the Monks' best scoring chances in the 76th minute. A high bouncing ball was sent from near midfield toward the net. Needham ventured beyond the defense and rushed inside the 18, chipping the ball over Elliott’s reach. Elliott came out to challenge, but the ball bounced one more time and sailed just high over the Simmons net.
Several SJC scoring chances ensued as the clock ticked away, but Elliott held her ground as the final line of Sharks defense. The final minute of the match was made even more dramatic when the Monks recorded three straight corner kicks in a manner of 30 seconds, but SJC was unable to convert the plays.
For the Monks, Mayo recorded one save, and Sharks keeper Elliott made five stops in the GNAC Semifinal.
Simmons will play #2 seed Emmanuel College in the GNAC Championship on Saturday. The match will be held at 12:30pm at Roberto Clemente Field in Boston.
