SCHENECTADY, N.Y.-In a rematch of the game played on October 6, Union will take on Nazareth College in a semi-final game of the NCAA Division III New York Regional Saturday at 1:30 at William Smith College. The host Herons will play Keuka in the 11
a.m. contest. The winners meet on
Sunday at 1 p.m. There is no
consolation game.
Union, seeded second in the New York State Region, is making
its third consecutive appearance in the NCAA event under seventh-year head coach Brian Speck. Two years ago the Dutchwomen won an opening-round game against homestanding Ithaca, 4-3 in four
overtimes, before losing to William Smith in the egion's semi-final contest. Last year Union dropped a 1-0 decision to visiting Western Connecticut State in three overtimes.
The Dutchwomen, who are 86-26-9 under Speck's (a native of
Burnt Hills) direction, go into the weekend at 14-3. Included in their victories is a 3-1 road win over Nazareth. Senior Lauren Byrne gave Union a 1-0 lead at
32:23 before sophomore Stephanie Mole' broke a 1-1 tie at 79:53. Senior Margaret Kostro sealed the win at 80:13. Junior Carolyn Stead had six saves for Union, which enjoyed a 10-7 shot on goal advantage.
Mole', a sophomore, is among seven double-digit scorers for
the Dutchwomen. Mole', who has 12 goals and 28 points, is followed by freshman Molly Flanagan (8-3-19), freshman
Brittany Cressman (7-4-18), senior Tara Ilsley (5-6-16), senior Lauren Byrne (3-6-12), junior Abbie West (4-3-11), and senior Delmar, New York, native,
Katie Smith (4-2-10).
On the other side of the field, Stead has given up just 12 goals while stopping 72 shots (a goals against average of 0.70 and a save
percentage of .857). She has played every second of Union's 1,535 minutes and has seven shutouts.
Anchoring the defense are senior All-American candidate Stephanie Maychack (Averill Park), senior Carrie Price and sophomore Vicky Kuzman (Guilderland).
Nazareth is in Saturday's semi-final game by virtue of its 2-1 decision over the University of Rochester in Wednesday's first round. The 12-4-1 Golden Flyers are led by Jamie Snyder (11-11-33), Casey Corcoran (10-2-22), and Stephanie Nardini (9-3-21), who is a native of Niskayuna. Goalie Kim French owns a 1.13 goals against average and a .778 save percentage with five shutouts.
This will be Union's third trip to William Smith's campus this year. The Dutchwomen split their season-opening two games in the William Smith Tournament (losing to Ohio
Wesleyan, 2-0, and beating NYU, 2-1 in double overtime) before losing to the Herons, 1-0, in the game that ultimately decided the UCAA championship on September 28. Union finished second to
undefeated William Smith with its 6-1 record.
The top-seeded Herons come into the contest with an overall
record of 16-1 with their lone setback coming at the hands of Ohio Wesleyan (1-0 in double overtime). Keuka, the
region's last seed, upset Oneonta State, 1-0, on Wednesday to improve their overall record to 10-9-1. Oneonta had a 26-1 overall shot advantage, including a 14-1 shot on goal margin.