MANCHESTER, N.H. – Freshman Alexis Elowitch (Portland, Maine) opened the game with a perfectly played put-away and freshman Kaila Sullivan (Burlington, Mass.) notched her first career goal as the Saint Anselm women's soccer team handled Stonehill, 2-0, at Grappone Stadium Wednesday evening.
The meeting of the hawks was an important one on several levels, including it being the long-delayed conclusion of the second annual Catholic Cup. Saint Anselm (7-5-3, 5-5-3 Northeast-10) took home its first Cup Championship with Wednesday's win after the first matchup was postponed back in early September due to area lightning.
The rain-soaked field turf played right into the hands of Saint Anselm's game plan as the Hawks held possession of the ball for much of the game. While the statistics show an evenly played game—Saint Anselm tallied just one more shot (15-14) than Stonehill—the host Hawks played as if the decision were never in doubt.
"As soon as we stepped out of the locker room today everybody was ready," senior midfielder and captain Meredith Martin (Victor, N.Y.) said. "We came out strong, with high intensity and everybody played for each other... When we have fun and we play together and everybody steps up, we can be unbeatable."
Just past the 14-minute mark, senior Jenna Szostak (Carver, Mass.) played a perfect ball through the Stonehill back line, finding Elowitch one-on-one with a center back. The freshman turned on the jets, beat the Skyhawk to the ball and poked it just past the goalkeeper who had emerged from the back line to notch the game-opening tally.
The Hawks continued their pressure on the Stonehill defense throughout the first half. Sullivan, in a one-on-two situation near the right end line played what appeared to be a cross to a streaking teammate. Yet Sullivan's strike ricocheted off a Skyhawk defender, who unintentionally redirected the ball into the back of the net to put Saint Anselm up 2-0.
Stonehill (8-6-2, 6-5-2 NE-10) managed to outshoot the Hawks in the second half 6-3, but few attempts troubled sophomore goalkeeper Cassie Quattropani (East Hartford, Conn.), who tallied six saves on the evening.
Catholic Cup Championship aside, the win was also important in Saint Anselm's push for a berth in the Northeast-10 Championship tournament. Wednesday's win paired with a New Haven loss leaped the Hawks over the Chargers in the league standings into ninth place, eliminating UNH in the process.
With three teams battling for two spots, Saint Anselm will first need a tough Saturday morning road victory over Le Moyne (9-7-1, 7-5-1 NE-10), which clinched a berth earlier Wednesday. Should the Hawks defeat the Dolphins, a Pace loss or Stonehill loss or tie would grant Saint Anselm a playoff berth.
Game time for the Saint Anselm/Le Moyne showdown at Ted Grant Field in Syracuse, N.Y., is slated for 11 a.m.
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