The AU women’s soccer seniors shined, sinking Navy 3-0 in their last game at Phil Reeves field on Saturday to clinch the second seed in the Patriot League tournament.
The final score was telling of the Eagles’ dominance, but the score halfway through the second half was not. Brooke Shepard’s frustrated yell after pushing one just over the upright summed it up best. The Eagles were outplaying the Midshipmen. AU finished the game with 19 shots on goal while limiting Navy to three.
In the 66th minute, Kelsey Brasher battled for the ball in the box then kicked it back to Michelle Montillio who pounded it home from 20 yards out. Brasher, the team leader in points and scoring, got a goal of her own at in the 80th minute, the seventh goal of the season from number seven. The Eagles worked the ball down the field to Brasher who crossed up a defender and shot left-footed to beat the goalkeeper.
“I really just wanted to get one more goal at Phil Reeves field,” Brasher said.
Then, off of Brooke Sheppard’s corner kick, Erin Stebbins sent one into the netting to put the icing on the cake. But the cake tasted bittersweet for the seniors since this was their last game at Phil Reeves field.
Before the game, seniors Kelsey Brasher, Olivia Heditsian, Alex Kitrilakis, Erin Koch, Kely McLaughlin, Mary Riegler and Erin Stebbins were honored with a ceremony on the field. During their careers, the seniors have produced 34 wins (14-7-8 in the Patriot League) and have made two appearances in the Patriot League Tournament.
Head Coach David Bucciero said it was great to see Brasher and Stebbins get rewarded for all their hard work. The coach also recognized it was a team effort. “It wasn’t just [Brasher] and Erin [Kock] but all the seniors who stepped up,” Bucciero said.
He will need them to step up again next week when the Patriot League Tournament starts. The Eagles will play either Bucknell, whom they defeated 3-1 this year, or Colgate, whom they lost to 1-0. However, Bucciero said he has no preference in which team they play.
The win in the final game of the season bumped the girls over the .500 mark to 10-9 and 5-2 in the Patriot League which is the third-best conference winning percentage (.714) in AU history.
You can reach this writer at sports@theeagleonline.com.
