Box Score WATERVILLE, MAINE – The Williams women's soccer team defeated the Colby Mules (7-6-0, 3-6-0 NESCAC) 2-1 today behind a 79th minute goal from Carla Nicasio. Alison Magruder had a goal for the Ephs (10-2-1, 8-0-1 NESCAC) in the opening frame before Annie Papadellis tied the game up just seven minutes into the second half. With the win, the Ephs stay undefeated in NESCAC play with one regular-season game left to play.
The Ephs got on the board in the 22nd minute following a shot by Nicasio that reflected off of Magruder. Magruder's reflection flew up into the air and over Colby keeper Emily Brook to give the Ephs the 1-0 lead. Magruder is second on the team in goals with five on the season. Despite outshooting the Mules by a total of nine to four in the first half, the Ephs were unable to find the back of the net for the rest of the half.
Out of the break, the Mules fought hard to tie the game up. Just seven minutes into the second half, Amanda Findlay found Papadellis up ahead. Papadellis put the ball past Eph goalie Laura Wann to tie the game up at one all.
Both teams continued to fight back and forth for the rest of the half as they worked hard to find a winning goal. The Ephs finally succeeded with 11:40 on the clock. Hana Tomozawa dished the ball in the box to Nicasio, who finished for her third goal of the year.
The Ephs outshot the Mules by a tally of 13-10 on the day. Brook posted seven saves in the game while Wann had one for the Ephs and Hannah Van Wetter added two in the opening frame.
Said Coach Michelyne Pinard after the game, "It was a messy game. We knew we were going to get chances, and we got a ton of chances in the first half that we didn't finish. The fact that we created the chance in the second half when the field was incredibly sloppy was great. I'm just glad we were able to finish on that."
The Ephs return home to take on Middlebury on Wednesday at 2 PM. Middlebury is currently third in the NESCAC behind the first-ranked Ephs and the second-ranked Amherst Jeffs (Amherst and Middlebury have the same record on the year). The game will determine the seeding for NESCAC playoffs, which begin next weekend.
Looking ahead, Pinard said, "We're excited about where we are and that we control our own destiny. Middlebury is a great team, but I think [our] team is ready to play great soccer come Wednesday. We know that it's going to be one of the best games of the year, and we're excited for it."
