With a 4-3 come-from-behind win over fourth-seeded Framingham State, the Albertus Magnus women's soccer team earned its first-ever ECAC Tournament victory and will advance to the semifinal round set to take place in New Haven on Saturday afternoon against top-seeded Roger Williams University. Game time and other information will be released on Thursday morning.
The Falcons' earned their 13th victory, which is a program record in wins in a single season and as the fifth seed will face the 19th-nationally ranked Hawks on Saturday.
The Falcons opened up today's contest trailing 2-0 early after a 12th minute goal by Framingham State's Cara Murtagh and a 17th minute goal by the 2013 MASCAC Player of the Year Kayla Austin. The Rams held an 11-6 advantage in shots in the first half as they went into the halftime break with a 2-0 lead.
Albertus bounced back in the second frame as senior Shelley Mirmina (Milford, Conn.) led the charge four minutes into the half with her seventh goal of the season and the 18th of her career as she cut the Rams' lead to 2-1 in the 49th minute. Mirmina one-timed the ball from close range after receiving a pass from fellow senior Amanda Roke (Cheshire, Conn.).
The assist for Roke was the 16th of her career, putting her alone at the top of the Falcons' all-time assists leaderboard with that tally. She was previously tied for first with 15 with Mirmina and former soccer standout DJ Figueroa.
Senior Meghan Loughman (Trumbull, Conn.) stepped up for the Falcons in the second half as well, as she scored her third goal of the year in the 51st minute and finished on a cross from Meaghan Skidmore (Terryville, Conn.). Loughman's goal tied the game at 2 apiece as the Falcons' dominated the second half of play.
After two unanswered goals by the Falcons, Framingham State's Marissa Miele scored in the 53rd minute to give the Rams' a 3-2 edge.
Roke, who has led the Falcons in points and goals all season, put the team on her back and scored back-to-back goals in the 67th and 71st minutes, including the game-winning goal. Roke drilled a shot to the left of the wall on a free kick in the 67th minute and found an opening between the goalkeeper and the post to tie the game at three.
Four minutes later, Roke scored her team-leading 12th goal of the season, which proved to be the game winner. The senior, whose five points from today's game tied a career high, now has 76 career points moving her into second place on the Falcons' all-time list. She is just one point behind DJ Figueroa (77 career points) in that category. Her 30 career goals also put her just one goal behind both Figueroa and Sam Gigliotti with the program's most goals with 31 total apiece.
Freshman Danielle Polvan (East Haven, Conn.), who recently earned Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) All –Conference Third Team honors, had a solid game for the Falcons as well as she played the ball well throughout the midfield, pressuring the Framingham State defense.
Sophomore Maria Case (West Haven, Conn.) also came up big for the Falcons as she made seven stops for the Falcons in 90 minutes of work. The Rams' Sara Sullivan dropped just her second game all season as she made three saves and allowed four goals in the loss.
First Round – Wednesday, November 13
No. 1 Roger Williams University over No. 8 Elms, 5-0
*No. 7 Castleton State University at No. 2 Brandeis University, 7 p.m.
No. 3 Wheaton College over No. 6 Eastern Nazerene College, 3-2 (2ot)
No. 5 Albertus Magnus College over No. 4 Framingham State University, 4-3
Semifinals – Saturday, November 16 at Albertus Magnus College
No. 1 Roger Williams winner vs. No. 5 Albertus Magnus winner, TBD
No. 2 Brandeis/No. 7 Castleton State winner vs. No. 3 Wheaton, TBD
Championship – Sunday, November 17 at Albertus Magnus College
Two Semifinal Winners - Championship, TBD
*Game has yet to be played as of 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 13.