BROOKVILLE, N.Y. -- Trailing 2-0 early in the first half, the LIU Post scored seven consecutive goals, and eventually rolled to a 10-5 win against New Haven in an NCAA Division II championship quarterfinal on Saturday at Hickox Field.
The Chargers' (16-4) two quick tallies came from the stick of Nicole McKee, but the Pioneers (18-1) rallied for seven markers to grab a 7-2 lead. Senior attacker Jackie Sileo had two goals and an assist in the run. Senior midfielder Katie Rotan and freshman attacker Stefani Vagelatos added helpers as well.
New Haven did manage to close the gap to 7-3 before the break though, as McKee found senior attacker Marissa Fisher at the eight-second mark. McKee led the UNH offense on the afternoon, sporting a three-point total (2 G, 1 A).
In the second half, LIU Post, which owned a 24-20 advantage in shots, got out to a hot start to put the contest out of reach. Junior midfielder Jenna Pierro and freshman defender/midfielder Cara Douglas struck for unassisted tallies within a period of 3:06 to widen the green and gold's cushion to 9-3.
From that point on, New Haven only came as close as a five-goal margin the rest of the way. The Chargers held a 9-8 edge in draw controls in the match, whereas the Pioneers more than doubled up their opposition in ground balls (18-8).
In addition to Sileo's three-point day, Pierro netted a pair of goals. Rotan, who won four draws and caused two turnovers, and Vagelatos each recorded a goal and an assist. Sophomore defender Brittany Smith collected a game-high three caused turnovers. Eight different players picked up two ground balls apiece for the hosts in the victory.
Between the pipes, senior goalie Katie Hannan made nine saves for the Pioneers. Her counterpart, Marissa McDermott, turned aside 10 shots for the Chargers.
Head Coach Meghan McNamara and her LIU Post squad now advance to next Saturday's NCAA Division II national semifinal in Salem, Virginia. They will take on Adelphi in a rematch of last year's semifinal contest at 2 p.m ET. The live broadcast will be streamed on NCAA.com.
