Women's Soccer Travels to Lesley for NECC Title Game

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

CHICOPEE, Mass. – The Elms College women's soccer team will look to avenge last season's double-overtime loss in the championship game when the Blazers travel to Lesley University for the New England Collegiate Conference Championship game at Edward Field on the campus of Buckingham, Browne & Nichols in Cambridge Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is slated for 2:00 p.m.

The Blazers pushed their season record to 11-8-1 overall after picking up a 2-1 victory over Regis College in the conference semifinals Thursday evening. Elms overcame a game-tying own goal to capture the 2-1 win behind a late strike from freshman forward Angelina Estrada (Springfield, Mass.). The Blazers are generating 2.0 goals per game on 16.9 shots, while holding opponents to 1.5 goals on 9.8 shots per game. Elms has limited their opponents to just two goals during their current 10-game unbeaten streak.

Sophomore forward Kylen O'Hearn (Somers, Conn.) has helmed the Blazers offense with a team-high 24 points on a team-high 10 goals with four assists. Somers ranks fourth in the NECC in points and fifth in the conference in goals. Freshman midfielder Jackie Soucia (Belchertown, Mass.) has tallied 11 points with four goals and three assists, and sophomore midfielder Rachel Connell (Easthampton, Mass.) has four goals and two assists on the year. Junior defender Michelle Rossignol (Manchester, Conn.) is the Blazers' leading distributor with five assists, ranking fourth in the NECC, while Estrada and sophomore midfielder Meeghan O'Connor (Fall River, Mass.) have added three goals apiece. Junior goalie Alexa Rinaudo (Bellmore, N.Y.) has been a constant in net for Elms, registering a 1.47 goals against average, a .741 save percentage, with 80 saves and a league-high 10 shutouts.

The Lynx are the top-seed in the conference tournament after posting a 17-3 overall mark, and a perfect 9-0 conference record. Lesley is riding a 10-game win streak, where they've outscored opponents 51-1 with nine clean sheets. As a team, the Lynx are producing 3.7 goals per game on 22 shots, while limiting opponents to just seven total goals in 20 games.

The focal point of the Lesley offensive attack is senior forward Alexis Giusti (Meridian, Calif.), who leads the NECC in goals (13), assists (10), and points (36). Junior defender Isabella Vidana (San Marcos, Calif.) has scored eight goals, while senior forward Marysol Flores (Pico Rivera, Calif.) had chipped in six goals and five assists. Senior midfielder Hannah Landerholm (Edmonds, Wash.) has contributed seven goals, and senior forward Cameron Brown (Marshfield, Mass.) and senior defender Jasmine Sanchez (Chino, Calif.) have each added six goals.

In their lone matchup earlier this season, the Lynx and Blazers played a scoreless first half of play before Lesley netted three second-half goals to record the 3-0 victory. Over the history of their matchup, Elms owns a 10-7-2 advantage, but the Lynx have won the last four meetings between the squads.

ELMS SOCCER