Women's Soccer Falls 1-0 in Regular-Season Finale; Clinches #4 Seed in NE-10 Tourney
WORCESTER, Mass. – Erin Kinback scored the game's only goal for Assumption in the fourth minute of the match, as the Greyhounds handed the Merrimack women's soccer team a 1-0 setback to close out the regular season on Saturday night in a Northeast-10 Conference tilt at Multi-Sport Stadium.
The Warriors round out the regular season with a 10-7-1 overall record and finish NE-10 play with an 8-6-1 mark. After both Franklin Pierce and New Haven suffered defeats on the last day of the regular season, Merrimack managed to move from sixth place in the standings to fourth due to its earlier win in the season at Southern New Hampshire, meaning the Warriors will host a quarterfinal playoff game next week in the NE-10 Tournament.
Kinback scored an unassisted marker at 3:53 for the home Greyhounds (4-10-3, 4-8-3 NE-10), and that accounted for the only offensive action of the game for either side.
Assumption controlled the majority of the match, outshooting Merrimack by an impressive 11-5 margin in the first half alone. Junior Nicole Curtis (Billerica, Mass.) finished with 10 saves in a losing effort, while Allison Bruder finished with five stops and benefitted from a team save for the home side.
"They took it to us tonight," head coach Gabe Mejail said afterward. "They wanted it more than us and we were playing tentatively, so give them credit. We'll have to play much more aggressive next week."
Junior Jenna Zechner (Billerica, Mass.) led the Warriors with a side-high four shot attempts – with three on target – while Caitlin Sewall registered four shots for the Greyhounds.
Assumption owned a 16-7 lead in shot attempts in the game as well as a 6-3 edge in corner kicks. Both sides combined for 23 fouls with no cards recorded over the course of the match.
The fourth-seeded Warriors will face fifth-seeded Franklin Pierce in the quarterfinal round of the NE-10 Tournament slated for Monday, Oct. 29. First whistle is tentative scheduled for 7 p.m., but with the developing weather headed toward the region, fans are advised to check back online at www.merrimackathletics.com over the course of the weekend for any schedule updates.
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