Kristen Upton, McDaniel
WESTMINSTER, Md. – McDaniel scored just 1:36 into the game to key its first-ever Centennial Conference (CC) tournament victory and punch a ticket to its first championship game, topping Gettysburg 3-1 in the 2016 women's soccer tournament semifinal on Saturday.
Kristen Upton (Chalfont, Pa./Central Bucks South) scored the opening goal for the top-seeded and 13th-ranked Green Terror (16-1-1), heading in an Abby Keen (Salisbury, Md./Parkside) corner kick from the right side.
Lauren Miesemer scored the lone goal for the fifth-seeded Bullets (8-8-2), drawing the visitors within 2-1 nearly two minutes into the second half.
After the Upton tally, Nicole Hill (Bowie, Md./Bowie) dribbled to the top-right of the box and fired top shelf through the keeper's hands and into the back of the net for a 2-0 lead at the 16:46 mark – a lead McDaniel took into the intermission.
Miesemer was able to finish a Jessica Cuttone corner kick to make it a one-goal game early in the second half.
On a corner kick in the 65th minute, an own goal set the final margin.
The Green Terror finished with a 13-2 advantage in shots and had a 5-4 edge in corner kicks.
Kiera Loftus made eight saves for Gettysburg in goal while Sarah McDonald (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) needed to make only one stop.
The victory maked the 100th career win for head coach Sandy Lagana. She is 61-26-10 in five seasons as the Green Terror's head coach.
McDaniel will host second-seeded and 19th-ranked Johns Hopkins on Sunday for the championship in search of its first title. The Blue Jays defeated Swarthmore 3-1 in the other semifinal and will go for their 13th championship. Game time on Sunday is 1 p.m.
Emily Maheras, Johns Hopkins
The Basics
• Score: No. 19 Johns Hopkins 3, Swarthmore 1
• Records: JHU (14-2-2, 8-1-0 CC), Swarthmore (14-3-0, 7-2-0 CC)
• Location: Westminster, MD · Green Terror Soccer Complex
• The Short Story: The second-seeded Johns Hopkins women's soccer team defeated No. 3 Swarthmore 3-1 in the Centennial Conference semifinal match in Westminster, MD. The Blue Jays will take on host No. 13 and first seed McDaniel Sunday at 1 p.m.
How it Happened
• Freshman Emily Maheras put the Blue Jays on the board in the 38th minute. Ana Bengoechea sent in a corner kick, and Maheras finished it for her second goal of the season and the 1-0 lead.
• Clara Aranguren made her lone save of the match in the closing seconds of the first half to preserve the 1-0 Hopkins lead at halftime.
• The Blue Jays jumped out to a hot start in the second half, as Bailey Monaco found the back of the net in the 49th minute to extend JHU's lead to 2-0.
• Swarthmore scored in the 75th minute, as Katie Dougherty found the back of the net on a breakaway opportunity.
• Meg Van de Loo sealed the match with the Blue Jays' third goal in the 84th minute as she shot the ball to the left side of the goal from inside the box.
Inside the Box Score
• Meg Van de Loo scored a goal for the 13th straight match, increasing her season total to a career-high 19 goals.
• Ana Bengoechea dished out her Centennial Conference leading ninth assist in the match.
• The Blue Jays limited Swarthmore to four shots, three fewer shots than the Garnet tallied in the last meeting between the team.
What it Means
• Johns Hopkins picked up its 25th all-time win over Swarthmore with the 3-1 victory.
• The Blue Jays have never lost to the Garnet in the postseason with a 4-0-1 record in the Centennial Conference tournament.
Centennial Championship Spotlight
• The Blue Jays will make their 15th appearance in the Centennial Conference Championship game.
• Johns Hopkins first played McDaniel in the postseason a year ago, winning 1-0 in the semifinal match.
• As the two seed, JHU has not lost a match, posting a record of 9-0-2, including Championship game wins in 2015, 2010, 2009 and 2005.
Up Next
• Hopkins will face host McDaniel in a matchup of the first and second seeds November 6 at 1 p.m. in Westminster, MD.