Grantham, PA (11/11/05) – Liz Saucier's goal just over two minutes into the second half held up as the #11 William Smith Herons posted a 2-1 win over #6 Montclair St. in the Second Round of the NCAA National Field Hockey Tournament.
The win sends William Smith into the Third Round to face host Messiah, a 7-4 winner over Alvernia, at 1:00 on Saturday. Montclair State finishes their most successful season in program history with a record of 17-3 while William Smith improves to 16-3.
William Smith held a 1-0 lead at the half despite being out shot by the Red Hawks 21-7. Sophie Dennis made one of the Herons seven first half shots count at the 19:30 mark. Heron goal keeper Susan Jordan kept Montclair (17-3) off the board by making 15 saves in the half. The Red Hawks also managed to earn 14 penalty corners but could not cash in on any of their attempts.
The second half was a bit more balanced as each team generated 13 shots but it was William Smith again making the first score as Saucier's scored 2:08 into the period extending the lead to 2-0. Montclair would cut the lead in half as
ALEXANDRIA KELLY took a pass from
JEN SOSS and pushed it by Jordan with only 6:30 left in the game. It was the sixth straight game that Kelly has notched at least one goal and gave her 15 for the season, the third-best single-season total in Red Hawk history.
Montclair out shot the Herons 34 to 20 on the day and held a decisive 23 to 7 advantage on penalty corners. Jordan finished with 23 saves while her counterpart
ROBYN APICELLI had 11 saves.
