Golden Goal Lifts Moravian To Women's Soccer Championship
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Freshman forward Arielle Caldas netted the
golden goal in the 108th minute to lift top seeded Moravian to a
1-0, double-overtime victory over second seed The Catholic
University of America in the 2008 Landmark Conference Championship
match on the HUB Quad.
The conference title is the first-ever for the Greyhounds, and it
was also the first time in three trips to the conference
championship match that Moravian had played at home. The Greyhounds
extended their unbeaten streak to 7-0-2, and Moravian is now 2-1-2
in double overtime this fall. Moravian will find out Sunday night
if it has received one of the three Pool B berths to the NCAA
Division III National Championship Tournament for the second
straight year. The Greyhounds, 14-5-2 overall after the win, are
part of Pool B since the Landmark Conference will not receive an
automatic berth until 2009.
Caldas collected the ball on the offensive side of midfield and
dribbled down the left side of the pitch. As she reached the
18-yard box, Caldas cut back towards the middle of the field as the
Catholic defender slipped on the wet surface. Caldas then ripped a
12-yard shot under Catholic junior goalie Tere Rossi and into the
back right corner of the net for her 11th goal of the season and
her fifth game-winning goal.
Catholic had a 25-15 advantage in shots with the Cardinals up
21-11 in shots after regulation. Catholic also had an 11-2 edge in
corner kicks. Moravian senior goalie Caitlin Corrigan made seven
saves for her eighth shutout of the season. Corrigan also picked up
her 51st career win and 34th career shutout which are both Moravian
records, and she moved into third in career saves, now with 312.
Rossi had four stops for Catholic.
Both teams had scoring chances throughout the match. Catholic had
two scoring chances with Corrigan making a good save on a shot by
sophomore forward Kelly Donnely in the 33rd minute. Rossi stopped
Moravian senior forward Tracy Fitzpatrick in the 41st minute on a
breakaway.
Late in the second half, both teams would have opportunities
again. The Cardinals got off six shots in the final six minutes
with Corrigan making one save and shot by Catholic freshman
midfielder Caitlin Brett hitting the left post. Fitzpatrick broke
in again one-on-one on Rossi with just under a minute to play in
regulation before chipping a shot wide to the right.
Fitzpatrick had another shot early in the first overtime. However,
the best scoring chance of the first extra session went to
Catholic. Donnely attempted to head a shot in from the right side
but Corrigan fully extended to just tap the shot over the cross bar
and onto the top of the net for a corner kick.
In the second overtime, Catholic had two shots blocked before they
reached the net then Rossi made a save on a Fitzpatrick header in
the 104th minute. In the 106th minute, Moravian junior forward
Alessandra Valdetara came down the right side of the box and ripped
a shot that bounced off of the cross bar to allow Catholic to
attack the other way. With the ball bouncing around, Caldas would
gain possession and head on her game-winning break.
Story provided by Moravian Sports Information
