Nov. 14, 2009

The SUNY Oneonta women's soccer team came away with a 1-0 victory today against Skidmore College in the first round of the NCAA Div. III tournament. The Red Dragons scored an early goal and then the defense made it stand up in advancing to a second round game tomorrow against host Williams College. The Ephs were victorious in its opener this morning against Keuka winning by a score of 5-0.

Oneonta had control throughout the match putting the pressure on the Skidmore defense from the opening whistle. The Red Dragons got on the scoreboard in the seventh minute of play when sophomore Dana DeSimone (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) collected a rebound of a shot by classmate Alicia Vollmer (Liverpool/Liverpool). The Red Dragons finished the game with a 16-6 advantage in shots.

The Oneonta defense was solid once again in this one as they kept the Thoroughbreds out of range for most of the contest. They held Skidmore to just six shots in the match four of which were stopped by goalie Jamie Chyat (Staten Island/Staten Island Academy). Of the four saves Chyat made in the game, two were diving saves to knock the ball away from further danger.

Today's win for Oneonta was its first opening round victory since 2006 when the Red Dragons defeated Rowan University 2-0 at Rochester. Unfortunately, Oneonta fell to Rochester 1-0 in the second round, spoiling its hopes of advancing to the sectional round.

This is Oneonta's 11th consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament, which they won in 2003.

Tomorrow's opponent, Williams, is undefeated at 18-0 and one of the top four seeds in this year's tournament. Oneonta has never faced the Ephs prior to this match, which is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. kick-off.