#4 Women's Soccer Advances to Skyline Championship in Upset Over #1 Farmingdale State

Written by Joshua Soto  (SJC-LI Sports Information)

Farmingdale, NY| It took penalty kicks, but the St. Joseph's College (L.I.) women's soccer team earned a spot in the Skyline Championship after their victory over top-seeded Farmingdale State on Wednesday night.  

After playing to a scoreless draw, the Golden Eagles topped the Rams 7-6 in a penalty shootout to advance. St. Joseph's now sits at 8-9-2 on the season, while the Rams close out their campaign with a 12-5-3 record.

Farmingdale started off the game controlling the tempo early on in the first half. The Rams tested the St. Joseph's defense when they recorded three shots at the 15 minute mark, as Ashlee Thompson fired a shot from 30 yards away to clip the crossbar. The momentum quickly shifted to the favor of the Golden Eagles as they were more aggressive to the ball and started to gain more possession.

In the 30 minute mark Jessica Cordano retrieved possession at Farmingdale's side of the field and sent a through ball to Claire Brady, but failed to record the opening goal as Karla Gomes cleared the ball in front of the box.  The Golden Eagles continued to apply pressure in the closing minutes of the half as Emily Lenartowicz registered a shot that earned the Golden Eagles a corner.  Kristin Carroll took the corner that curled in the box where midfielder Lauren Heschel was to receive the ball, but the Rams defense cleared the ball before it dropped in the goal. The two sided entered halftime scoreless with shots tilted in favor of the Rams (6-5).

The Rams picked up on their offense in the second half as they earned the first corner three minutes into the half. Melissa Lijo took the corner for Farmingdale as Alexandria Tudisco came streaking from the near-side of the post to head it just wide of the goal. The Rams were quickly awarded their second corner of the frame as the set-piece failed yet again as Andrea Kiefer headed just wide of the goal.

The Golden Eagles started their counter attack in the 58th minute as Chelsea Bellini setup a cross that was blocked by the sliding defender.  However, St. Joseph's couldn't capitalize on the opportunity as the Panthers cleared the corner. 

Katie McGarrell was tested again in the 60th minute when Thompson came streaking down the left flank to shoot it to McGarrell for the save. In the 75th minute Alena Gannon dribbled the ball past several defenders to fire a strike to the diving McGarrell.

The Rams continued to dominate the second half finding scoring opportunities in the late minutes of the game. In the 85th minute Thompson picked up the ball Farmingdale's box and went downfield for the breakaway she was one on one with McGarrell but missed just wide of the goal. Both teams were still fighting for the winning goal, but the semi-final would head into overtime.

The Golden Eagles had an opportunity to score the game winner as Claire Brady drew Gomes to the left said of the box, but Farmingdale's defense was there to knock away the attempt early in overtime.

In the 100th minute, Cordano had the ball 25-yards out and fired a shot in to the hands of Gomes to save the ball from the game winner.  The Golden Eagles continued to push numbers up but failed to score the winning goal at the end of the extra period.

The teams continued their hard fought battle in the second OT period, but after 110 minutes of action the game would go into penalty kicks.

Tied 6-6 in PK's, McGarrell made an astonishing save to keep score tied. Emily Lenartowicz would step up for the next shot and delivered the winning strike to carry the Golden Eagles to victory.

In a match that saw her side outshot 17-12, McGarrell made just four saves, while Farmingdale's Gomes made seven. The Rams won more corners (6-3), but were also called for more fouls (13-12).

St. Joseph's continues its road to glory on Saturday, November 7 when they travel to Newburgh, NY to face #3 Mount Saint Mary College in the Skyline Conference Championship. Live stats will be available here.