HARTFORD, CT––Williams (8-9, 3-6 NESCAC) lost 15-6 to Trinity (15-0, 9-0 NESCAC) in the New England Small College Athletic Conference Quarterfinals. The game marked the end of the Ephs' 2011 season, while the Bantams advance to the NESCAC Semifinal on May 7th. The No.3 Bantams are the top-seed in the tournament and will host Tufts, Colby and Bowdoin next weekend. The Ephs, who were ranked No. 19 heading into this game, finish the season with a four-game losing streak and an 8-9 record.
Trinity's Megan Leonhard scored early, but Meera Sivalingam, assisted by senior tri-captain Anne Marie Burke, responded two minutes later. Leonhard broke the tie at 21:28, setting off a five-goal Bantam run that left Trinity up 6-1 at the end of the second half. Each of the Bantams' goals in the run were scored by different players.
Williams came out strong after the half time break. Junior Margie Fulton, who leads the team with 46 points, scored two minutes into the second half. Classmate Kaitlin Ellis, who finishes the season only one point behind Fulton, added a tally of her own to make the score 6-3. Burke scored a minute later to cut the Bantam lead to two.
Head Coach Chris Mason said "We really came on in the beginning of the half, getting it to 8-6. After the score was 9-6, Trinity was able to slow it down and spread out, so we had go out and get them. We had to give up the inside and they were able to get in and score some more goals."
Trinity's Rachel Romansky broke Williams' momentum, scoring her second goal of the game at 21:43. Fulton and Romansky traded another pair of goals, making the score 8-5 16:02 left to play. Shea Kusiak followed up on Romansky's third goal, adding the ninth goal of the game at 12:52. Fulton scored her third and final goal twenty seconds later, but Kusiak's goal at 10:41 sparked another Trinity run. The Bantams scored six goals in the final ten minutes of the half, securing their 15-6 victory.
Romansky and Kusiak lead the Bantams' offense, with 5 and 4 goals, respectively. Leonhard and Liz Bruno also contributed two goals a piece. Goalkeeper Olivia Whitney made five saves.
In addition to Fulton's three, Burke, Sivalingam, and Ellis each contributed a goal. Senior goalie Julia Schreiber recorded ten saves.
The game marked the end of Burke and Schreiber's careers. Mason said "The team played hard to end and our two seniors really played very well.Julia Schreiber had an absolutely fantastic game. Anne Marie had a very strong game as well."
Mason concluded saying "We had determination in the beginning of the half. We played fairly well, but in the end we had to go out and try and win the ball back. The score wasn't great, but you have to try and go for the win. So that's what we didn."
