WSoccer W ECAC heartbreaker to Smith
The Brandeis women's soccer team (15-2-3) won one game and lost one in the ECAC tournament this week, beating the Wentworth Polythechnic Institute 2-0 on Wednesday and losing a double-overtime shootout 3-1 to Smith College on Saturday. On Wednesday the top-se eded Judges defeated number eight seed Wentworth in the ECAC quarterfinals by a score of 2-0 at Gordon Field.
In the 26th minute Skylar Buchanan '05 passed to Lauren Gregor '06 from a corner kick, and Gregor booted it in for her 12th goal of the season.
The Judges built on their 1-0 lead in the 74th minute when Judges' co-captains connected. Mid fielder Julie Golomb '04 sent the ball to the goal line where Melissa Delowe '04 received it and juked two defenders before scoring the Judges' second goal of the game. This goal extended Golomb's school record for goals in the season to 17.
Goalie Natasha Pieciak '06 made four saves for her eighth shutout of the season, while Wentworth's Diane Piersall played a strong game, making 10 saves.
That same day, fifth-seeded Smith College (13-5-4) defeated Western Connecticut 1-0, so they advanced to play the Judges in the ECAC semifinals.
Saturday, on their home turf of Gordon Field, the Judges played Smith to a scoreless tie in regulation before falling 3-1 in a shootout.
The Judges put forth a Herculean effort in this game, yet the final outcome was not in their favor.
Brandeis actually had a 16-4 advantage in shots on goal late into the second half, but they were unable to find the back of the net. The Judges did have a goal in the 67th minute on a corner kick, but it was negated due to a foul on Brandeis.
Smith put a lot of pressure on the Judges late in the game as they had seven consecutive shots on goal in the last 20 minutes of regulation.
The Pioneers were rejected one time when freshman Kate Johnson shot a laser beam that hit the crossbar in the 71st minute.
The Pioneers caught a tough break again when Pieciak deflected a hard shot just past the post by the Pioneer's Johanna Perez.
Because 110 minutes of play were not enough to decide this playoff match, the game was to be decided by a shootout.
Brandeis had its opportunity first, but Gregor hit the cross bar wit her shot. Next, Smith sophomore midfielder Eleanor Loomis put the Pioneers up 1-0 with the first goal of the shootout.
Loomis's goal would not go unanswered, however, as the Judges' Skylar Buchanan '05 then tied the shootout.
The Judges clearly had the momentum as when Smith shot next, Pieciak made a remarkable stop on Milena Milenkovic.
Unfortunately, the Judges were not, however, able to capitalize on this shift of momentum, as they missed their next two penalty shots. Johnson scored to give the Pioneers a 2-1 advantage, and senior midfielder Morgan Theis added an insurance goal for the Pioneers, securing their 3-1 victory.
Pieciak finished the game with seven stops while Monica Jarman had nine saves of her own for the Pioneers. Catherine Miller-Little was in goal for the shootout for the Pioneers but did not end up making any stops.
Smith advanced to the ECAC championship game with this semifinal victory over Brandeis.
"We played well and it was a great season. There was nothing to be upset about. The seniors had a great year." Gregor said.
Despite not making the ECAC final game, the Judges had an amazing season as they compiled the most wins since 1990. There were many outstanding personal seasons for the Judges such as Pieciak, Gregor and Delowe.
With many returning players coming back, the Judges hope to have a strong 2004 campaign.
"It was a really productive season, and it was a great way to end my soccer playing career at Brandeis," Golomb said.
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