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WILLIAMSTOWN, MA- Top seeded Williams College (15-0-0) defeated
sixth seeded Middlebury College (9-5-2), 4-1, in the NESCAC
semifinals on Cole Field this afternoon. Ephs forwards
Brianna Wolfson and Gabrielle Woodson each scored two goals en
route to the victory. while Middlebury's Caitlin Parker
notched the lone goal for the Panthers.
Last fall Williams' season was cut short after faltering in
the first round of the NESCAC tournament. The Ephs
upperclassmen still remember the loss, and were determined to not
let the same thing happen twice. Ephs head coach Michelyne
Pinard commented, “The bottom line is we are playing great
soccer right now, and that is what gets us through these tough
conference tournament games. Ultimately we are just having
fun and working really hard.”
Williams and Middlebury faced off in the regular season on October
13. The Ephs defeated the Panthers by a score of 4-0, but
Middlebury battled Williams to a stalemate until the 55th minute
before the Ephs broke the game open with four goals in a 14:23
span. This afternoon's match up was another very
physical battle, as both emotionally charged teams combined for 20
total fouls. This time Williams did not wait long before
getting on the scoreboard though.
At the 5:38 mark, Wolfson scored the first of her two goals.
After diverting a Panthers defender and causing Middlebury's
keeper to come out of net, Wolfson kicked a line drive shot to the
far right post past the charging keeper to give the Ephs the early
lead. Less than twenty minutes later Wolfson tallied her
second goal off a cross from Sara Wild. Wild crossed the ball
from the right side of the field to Wolfson who, playing the ball
of a bounce, laced a hard ground ball into the net for a 2-0
lead.
Williams set the pace early in the second half as well, tallying
their third goal just three minutes into the second period.
Woodson scored the first of her two goals off a breakaway.
Woodson and Wolfson notched the Ephs final goal off one of their
trademark give and go plays. Both players finished the game
with two goals and an assist.
It looked as though Williams would shut out Middlebury for the
second time this season, but the Panthers would not back down and
managed to avoid the shutout with five minutes left in play.
Caitlin Parker kicked a perfectly placed line drive from outside
the penalty box that landed in the upper right corner to bring the
final score to 4-1.
Besides a defensive lapse that relinquished the shutout, Williams
dominated time on the ball. They only out shot their opponent
14-8 but the 12-1 advantage in corner kicks played a big part in
the game as it allowed the Ephs more opportunities on goal.
Ephs' keeper Lauren Sinnenberg gave up only her third goal
of the entire season, and recorded 4 saves. Panther's
keeper Lauryn Torch notched four saves in ninety minutes of play.
Williams advances to the finals of the NESCAC tournament and will
play the winner of the Bowdoin/Tufts game tomorrow at 12:00 noon.
