BRIDGEPORT, Connecticut-If the Yellow Jackets were going to make a run in the NCAA Tournament, they knew they needed to score more goals than the one per game they averaged during the regular season.
They did that and then some, pounding ten shots on goal against Northeast-10 Conference Champion Stonehill for a 3-1 in the First Round of the East Regional to advance to the Semifinal against top-seeded Bridgeport.
"We played as a team," Head Coach Kevon Isa said of the game. "Everyone was on the same page. We played like a team that deserved to be in the NCAA Tournament."
"Everyone's role was just as important," Assistant Coach Cassie Ashwell said. "We played some of our best soccer of the season," added Assistant Coach Rob Libera.
Fighting against the wind in the first half, the Jackets managed to strike first. Off of a free kick by graduate student back
Miko Iida, a Stonehill defender armed the ball down in the box, setting up a penalty kick. Sophomore midfielder
Johanna Nilsson took it and buried it in the lower left corner for her fourth of the year at 17:35.
"My plan was to just pick a corner and hit it. I just tried to keep it low," Nilsson said of her shot selection.
The Skyhawks would generate chances as their touches into the wind got better later in the half; Claire O'Brien would fire home a free kick to make it 1-1 at 30:45, and the defense of Iida on a corner kick, where she headed two chances away along the goal line, was all that stopped Stonehill from taking a lead into the half.
However, with the wind at their backs, the Yellow Jackets, who already controlled possession, turned the attack into high gear. NE-10 Goalkeeper of the Year Jamie Block made two spectacular saves early in the frame, one on graduate student forward Merissia Phipps and one on sophomore forward
Federica Frew, and then Nilsson hit the right post.
Finally, the Yellow Jackets broke through. Nilsson fed a ball to the left for senior midfielder
Stephanie Tweer, and Tweer took full advantage of the wind, teeing up a blast into the upper left corner from forty yards out for a 2-1 lead at 63:33, her third of the campaign.
"It was just a feeling-I didn't have the time to think, it was instinct. The wind helped carry the ball and I think it deflected too. I got lucky," Tweer said of the winning goal.
Less than seven minutes later, from range again, senior midfielder
Jessica Margaretta ripped a rocket into nearly the same spot on the target, beating Block for her second of the year at 70:02 and giving the Jackets a 3-1 edge.
"At halftime, everyone told me to shoot, so I did," Margaretta said of the goal.
AIC held Stonehill without a shot in the second half; sophomore goalkeeper
Madison Brown made three saves in the win, as the Jackets held an 18-5 shot advantage that included a 10-4 shots-on-goal differential.
"The wind was really strong, but I trust my defense; I believe we have the best defense in the NE-10, and they give me a lot of confidence to play well," Brown said of the contest.
The Jackets play the Purple Knights on Sunday at Knights Field at noon.
