Montclair, NJ (10/18/08) – Sophomore Leah Pecoroba ( Galloway, NJ / Holy Spirit) scored the game's lone goal 11 minutes into the contest as Richard Stockton College edged Montclair State, 1-0 in a New Jersey Athletic Conference women's soccer match on Saturday evening at Sprague Field.
Senior goalkeeper Alex Rogers ( Medford, NJ / Shawnee) stopped four shots to record her ninth shutout of the season as the Ospreys won their fifth straight and moved to 14-2-1 on the season, 6-1 in the NJAC.
Junior goalkeeper
LEAH TEPPERMAN ( North Andover, MA / North Andover) made seven saves for Montclair State, which fell to the .500 mark both overall and in the conference. MSU is now 7-7-1, 3-3-1 in the league.
Pecoroba recorded her sixth goal of the season and third game-winner as she tucked in a shot at the 10:50 mark of the contest on the Ospreys third shot of the evening. Stockton's Lauren O'Shea ( Petersburg, NJ / Ocean City) put a shot on goal that Tepperman made an initial save on. The ball came back out and Montclair tried to clear the ball out of the box. However, Pecoroba picked up the loose ball and moved toward the goal before tucking away a shot inside the near post for the lone score of the game.
The Ospreys would get several more chances to extend the lead during the opening period, but Tepperman kept the game close as she made six saves. Stockton also got a bad break as Amanda Altman's ( Beachwood, NJ / Toms River South) hit the crossbar in the 28 th minute.
After being outshot 10-2 in the first half, Montclair State turned the tables getting 11 of the 13 attempts over the final 45 minutes. Rogers made three saves, including a knock away over the crossbar of an
ANGELA MARTONE ( Toms River, NJ / Toms River South) shot with 23:05 remaining. Rogers then preserved the shutout as she denied
RACHEL SENYSZYN ( Succasunna, NJ / Roxbury) with 41 seconds to play.
Montclair State returns to action on Wednesday, October 22 in a non-conference contest against Elizabethtown College at MSU Soccer Park beginning at 4:00 pm. It will be the first meeting between the teams since the Blue Jays 1-0 win in the second round of the 2006 NCAA Division III Soccer Championship.
