ALLENDALE, Mich. -- Despite a strong defensive effort from Northwood (Mich.), the Grand Valley State women's soccer team remained undefeated in GLIAC tournament play and extended its winning streak to 17 matches with a 1-0 victory on Tuesday evening.
The No. 1 Lakers dominated at both ends of the field, but some near-misses allowed the Timberwolves to hang around.
Junior forward Jenny Shaba ended the drama in the 80th minute with her 10th goal of the season.
Freshman forward Erika Bradfield managed to maneuver by the last Northwood defender and streaked up the right half of the field. Once she entered the box, she native sent a pass across the pitch to a wide-open Shaba for the easy putaway. Bradfield now has six assists this year.
Northwood never managed to test senior goalkeeper Abbey Miller. GVSU did not allow the Timberwolves to get off a single shot en route to posting its 17th shutout of the 2013 campaign. The Lakers fired 30 shots, 12 of which were on target.
The victory allows the Lakers to advance to the semifinals of the GLIAC tournament, which will be played on Friday. GVSU will host fifth-seeded Ferris State for the right to move on to the championship game.
No. 4 Saint Rose 1, Franklin Pierce 0
ALBANY, N.Y. -- Saint Rose will make its 12th consecutive Northeast-10 Conference semifinal appearance after advancing behind Tuesday's 1-0 quarterfinal win versus Franklin Pierce.
The top-seed Golden Knights, who are ranked fourth in the final regular-season coaches' poll, will host New Haven on Friday. The fifth-seed Chargers advanced via Tuesday's 5-1 triumph at fourth-seed Merrimack. Saint Rose upended visiting New Haven 2-1 last Wednesday in the regular-season meeting between the two squads.
There were few scoring opportunities as each squad managed only one shot on goal. However, the Golden Knights (17-0-2) made theirs count with 24:43 gone in the game.
Junior midfielder Emily Benjamin slipped a pass down the right flank that caught fellow junior midfielder Meeghan Arno in stride. Arno took a dribble and delivered a shot from about 20 yards out that sailed inside the far left post for what held up as the game winner.
Overall, Saint Rose produced a 7-1 shot advantage and generated five corner kicks, while yielding only one.
No. 7 California (Pa.) 5, Mercyhurst 0
CALIFORNIA, Pa. -- Behind goals by five different players, the No. 7 and top-seeded Vulcans cruised to a 5-0 victory against eighth-seeded Mercyhurst on Tuesday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament.
With the win, the California (Pa.) team extended its winning streak to 16 games and improved to 16-2-1 overall. The Vulcans also secured hosting rights for the remainder of the PSAC tournament, which resumes with the semifinals on Friday. Meanwhile, the Lakers finish the year with a 9-9-1 mark.
The Vulcans jumped out to a quick lead in the fifth minute when junior Chelsea Crockett scored off a pass from classmate Megan Politowski following a failed clear attempt by the Lakers. California added to the lead less than 10 minutes later when senior Kelsey Russo tallied a goal with assists by Erin Hogan and Crockett. Politowski recorded a goal in the 44th minute off a rebound following a corner kick by junior Jordan Gray.
Less than six minutes into the second half, junior Haley Henderson tallied her team-leading ninth goal of the season on a breakaway. California closed the scoring at the 65:22-mark when junior Bethany Smyda posted an unassisted goal after causing a turnover at midfield.
Freshman goalkeeper Meghan Jayes recorded her fifth shutout of the year after making four saves on Tuesday. The Vulcans outshot the Lakers by a 26-7 margin, including 15 shots on goal, and finished with a dominating 13-2 advantage in corner kicks.
California will host fifth-seeded Shippensburg in the semifinals on Friday with time still to be determined. The Raiders advanced in the tournament after winning 4-3 at Edinboro in penalty kicks after the game remained scoreless through double overtime.
No. 9 American International 5, Assumption 0
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- American International advanced to the semifinals of the Northeast-10 championship tournament with a 5-0 victory against Assumption on Tuesday night.
The Yellow Jackets improve to 15-1-2 this season, while the Greyhounds end their 2013 campaign at 7-5-5.
AIC first struck 20 minutes in when sophomore midfielder Ophelie Brevet scored as a result of passes from senior forward Mariah Shade and freshman midfielder Jessica Margaretta. Only 25 seconds later, AIC tacked on another goal as junior forward Sonia Basma beat the defense with a set-up from senior forward Caroline Boyce for her 16th goal of the season.
AIC took a 2-0 advantage into the halftime break with the Greyhounds still within reach.
The Yellow Jackets tacked on another goal in the 52nd minute off a penalty kick from sophomore defender Romina Bell, her first of the season. Within eight minutes, Basma beat the defense and left the ball for Shade, who drilled home the easy chip shot and give AIC a 4-0 edge. The fifth goal was tacked on in the 83rd minute by sophomore forward Alyssa Werbicki, assisted from downfield by Bell.
The Greyhounds had their chances as AIC narrowly outshot them 20-16, but they only put four on goal.
AIC junior goalkeeper Sam Tabak had four saves as she improved her record to 14-1-2. Assumption junior goalkeeper Rachel Edgin had five saves and put forth a strong effort against a solid Yellow Jacket offense.
AIC advances to the semifinals of the NE-10 championship to face third-seeded Adelphi on Friday.
