October 22, 2011

STANDISH, ME – Saint Joseph's (6-4-4, 5-3-4 GNAC) and Saint Joseph (Conn.) played to a 1-1 tie in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's soccer match at Westerlea Way Field on Saturday afternoon. Katherine Chambers '12 (Hampden, Maine) netted the Monks' goal in the stalemate.

The Monks play at Mount Ida College on Sunday in the side's final 2011 GNAC regular-season contest and most important match of the year. With a win or a tie tomorrow, the Royal Blue captures the #8 seed in the upcoming GNAC Tournament, which begins next Saturday. With a loss, the Monks fall out of the conference tourney.

As of this evening, St. Joe's and Emmanuel College sit in a tie for the eighth and final slot in the GNAC playoffs with 19 points apiece, but the Saints hold the tiebreaker since they defeated the Monks by a 2-1 margin earlier this month.

The visiting Blue Jays controlled the tempo in the early going, but the Monks struck first in the 25th minute on what was the hosts' second shot of the game. The play began with a corner kick, taken by freshman midfielder Catherine Murch (West Baldwin, Maine), and was closed out by Chambers, who cleaned up a scrum in front of the net with her fifth goal of the season.

The 1-0 lead held true for the remainder of the first half, a time frame during which the visitors held advantages in both shots (7-4) and corner kicks (3-1). Blue Jays keeper Holly Mirabella '12 (Seymour, Conn.) made two saves in the opening stanza while SJC netminder Jaci Lorenzen '14 (Windham, Maine) posted four stops over the opening 45 minutes.

The second half featured plenty of play in the midfield, as neither team showed the ability to move the ball into the respective offensive zones on a consistent basis. In fact, there was a 15-minute span mid-way through the latter period where a shot was not recorded by either team.

The Blue Jays managed to tie the game shortly after the offensive drought, however. Patricia Nolan '14 (Portland, Conn.) knotted the game at one-apiece at the 82:20 mark with a shot taken from the right side of the 18 that darted into the net, barely inside the left post. Lorenzen was in position and made a diving attempt, but the shot sailed just beyond her fingertips.

Both sides recorded chances over the final seven minutes, but none posed a serious scoring threat as the match was headed for extra play.

Monks freshman forward Doe Leckie (Naples, Maine), who made her first collegiate start this afternoon, posted a pair of scoring chances during the overtime periods by simply out-hustling the opponents. Unfortunately, neither play resulted in a shot, as the first was a 1 v 1 with Mirabella, who scooped up a loose ball and braced for the impending collision, and the other was a breakaway opportunity squelched by the final buzzer.  

Lorenzen recorded seven saves while Mirabella tallied five stops in the conference deadlock.

Overall, Saint Joseph (Conn.) held a 17-9 advantage in shots and a 5-2 cushion in corner kicks. The Blue Jays were whistled for 18 fouls while the Monks committed 16 offenses.

With the result, Saint Joseph's is now 3-0-2 in the history of the series with Saint Joseph (Conn.).

The Monks play the Mustangs of Mount Ida (2-12, 1-10 GNAC) tomorrow at 2:00 PM.