Needing a victory to stay in position for the playoffs, the Stony Brook women’s soccer team got just that on the always special Family Day.
The Seawolves got an early goal from junior Taryn Schoenbeck and kept New Hampshire off the board the entire game. Sophomore Chelsea Morales made seven saves to record her second shutout this season.
Schoenbeck scored in the 13th minute on a shot from 15 yards out from the right wing to put the Seawolves up early. “It was really great especially with family here,” Schoenbeck said, “It was good, since we’ve been struggling, and not really scoring.” That goal was her third goal of the season, which is the most on the team. Sophomore Larissa assisted the only goal of the game.
Stony Brook as a team improved to 2-2-1 in the America East and 4-9-1 overall. The Wildcats dropped to 1-2 in the conference and 3-10-1 overall.
Meanwhile, on the defensive side of the ball, the goalkeeper sophomore Chelsea Morales, was the player of the day, recording seven saves. Of those seven saves, none were as big as the stops she made at the end of the game.
With time winding down, Morales made two diving stops to put an end to any chance of New Hampshire tying the game. “I was really happy with the way the team performed today, and happy that we came away with a much needed win,” said Morales.
Even though the Seawolves won the game, they did have some more opportunities to cushion their lead. Sophomore Caitlin Pfeiffer had a chance at a goal towards the end of the first half, but missed wide left. Goalkeeper, Erica Correa stopped eight stops, and turned away a few more Seawolve chances.
She stopped Nysch’s shot in the 54th minute and kept the game within one goal.
“I was happy with our team’s depth, since it was unusually warm outside. I had 22 players, and was able to rotate them, while keeping the level the same,” said Coach Sue Ryan. This victory was a huge one for the Seawolves, as they try to keep their playoff hopes alive, with three games remaining. Stony Brook will be home on Thursday against Boston University, another tough opponent.“It was a great win, but it was such a bonus with the families there. We love playing at home and defending our turf, and it was nice get a badly needed win in front of this crowd,” said Coach Ryan.
