By Eddie Young
Sports Editor
The College’s women’s soccer team defeated No. 20 Montclair State 3-2 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference semifinal, giving them a trip to the final to compete for the NJAC championship. This victory marks the second time this season the Lions have gotten the best of the Red Hawks, with their regular season game on Oct. 14 in Montclair having ended as a 4-1 win.
As the second seed in the NJAC, the Lions earned a first round bye and the right to host this semifinal game. Montclair State, the third seed, defeated Stockton on Oct. 28 to move into the semifinals.
The College started off the game on the right foot. They were able to hold the majority of possession for the first half, and got two goals out of it, both assisted by junior defender Ava Curtis.
In the 12th minute, fifth-year forward Ava Garay slotted away the first goal of the game for the Lions. In the 23rd minute, fifth-year forward Emma Pascarella got a goal of her own, giving the College a comfortable 2-0 lead that they took into halftime.
The Lions looked to be in control early in the second half, as Montclair State was unable to string together enough passes to get themselves deep into the opposing half. However, this lead Red Hawks sophomore forward Kylie Prendergast to take matters into her own feet, as she dribbled around the defense of the Lions and curled a shot into the bottom right corner of the net, capping off a nice solo run and cutting her team’s deficit to one.
For a moment, it seemed as if momentum was shifting towards Montclair State, but the College quickly took back control of the game as they began to dominate possession and keep the ball in the attacking half.
The Lions were almost able to increase their lead off of a header from a corner taken by Pascarella, but a goal line clearance held their lead at 2-1.
However, 15 minutes later, Garay was able to get her second goal of the game, tapping the ball into the net off of a perfectly placed cross from Pascarella. This gave the College room to breathe with a two-goal cushion and gave Pascarella her 14th assist on the season, the new single season record for the school.
The third goal proved necessary, as in the 87th minute, a takedown in the penalty box led to a converted penalty kick for the Red Hawks. This made the score 3-2 and incited some hope in Montclair State for the final few minutes of the game.
The hope did not take them very far, though, as the Lions were able to keep possession of the ball and waste time effectively, leading them to pulling out the hard fought 3-2 victory.
After possibly ending Montclair State’s season, the College will now travel to Glassboro to take on Rowan University for the NJAC title. Rowan was the regular season champion, thanks in large part to a 1-0 victory over the College, which gave them the one seed in this tournament and home field advantage for every game. They also won the NJAC tournament last year as the two seed and beat the College in the semifinal on their way to the title.
“Our mindset is just staying calm and composed when stepping out on the field Friday,” journalism major Pascarella said about the title game. “Everyone who steps out on the field in this upcoming game is going to give it their all and work hard for each other.”
The Lions will look to avenge their loss against Rowan from earlier in the season and claim the NJAC title and the automatic berth to the NCAA championship that comes along with it. The championship will take place on Nov. 3rd at Rowan at 5 p.m.
