By Matt McDermott, GoMessiah.com student manager
San Antonio, TX — Friday's weather in San Antonio was an anomaly of sorts.
Thankfully, the play of the Messiah College women's soccer team was not.
Messiah played through the Alamo City's first snowfall in 24 years during Friday's NCAA Division III National Semi-Final against The College of New Jersey, claiming a solid, 1-0 win over the Lions to advance to the national championship game for the fifth time in program history — all while picking up the team's 18th consecutive win.
A near impossible, pseudo-cross from junior Joanna Haqq snuck behind the far post with just over 24 minutes remaining in regulation, unlocking a scoreless contest that saw both teams create quality chances on the other team's frame. That goal stood as the game's only marker, and the Falcons will now take on Washington University-St. Louis Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. (CST) for the 2009 NCAA Division III Championship as a result.
“We're obviously very happy to be moving on, because TCNJ is a very good team,” said Scott Frey, Messiah head coach. “They're so quick, and they're young. They're going to be good for a very long time. We're pleased with the result and will need to bring another good effort tomorrow.”
As flurries started to fall at the game's outset, it was TCNJ (20-3-1) that looked to play the aggressor early on, as the Falcons found themselves pressured – almost as rare of an occurrence this season as snowfall in southern Texas. Just five minutes into the game, the Lions garnered their first corner kick, and the ensuing ball was played short to sophomore Maria Grady, who curled a ball to the back post. The ball passed by two TCNJ players but landed four yards from the end line at the feet of sophomore Kelsey Gorman, who cleared the ball away from pressure.
It wouldn't be the only time the Falcons' defense would survive a strong attack from the Lions in the game's early goings, as just 10 minutes in, TCNJ strung together another quality attack. This time, it was four TCNJ players tooling in the Messiah box, looking to connect on either a mistake or mis-hit ball.
Again the Falcons' back line stepped up big, however, as senior center back Carey Cortese cleared away the chance for TCNJ.
“We keep living on them, don't we?” Frey asked rhetorically about his defense, often overlooked by outsiders but never from the program's leader. “Our back row … unbelievable. You have Kelsey Gorman, who's been sick for 10 days, hasn't done a thing for 10 days, she plays 90 minutes and is a rock. Carey was rock solid, (juniors) Molly (Bletz) and Katie (Hoffsmith) did what they do every game. That back row? I can't say enough about them.”
After Frey's defense squashed TCNJ's first few attacks, the remainder of the first half was primarily a battle in the midfield as each team hoped to find advantage and space to play in order to control the possession of the game. Both teams' rate of play and pressure were high as the midfield played as a virtual 'no-mans land' for possession, as passes were connected but couldn't be strung together.
Junior Erin Hench and senior Amanda Naeher nearly hooked up for the 14th time on the year with just over 16 minutes to play in the half as, off a throw in, Hench carried the ball through the midfield, shielding two defenders away from the ball. Naeher timed a run just past the back defender but Hench couldn't muster enough juice on her through ball, forcing Naeher to slow down to trap the ball while battling the Lions' final defender on her left hip. With TCNJ senior keeper Jessica Clarke pressing as well, Naeher had to take a quick shot, but the effort was deflected to another TCNJ defender and cleared.
At the close of the first half, the Lions and the Falcons were on the verge of a stalemate, both physically and statistically. An 8-4 Messiah advantage in total shots was subdued by a 1-1 count in corner kicks, and Frey said that he noticed the struggle between the two teams.
“(TCNJ) is a very, very good team,” Frey said. “They were very fast, very good with the ball, and applied great pressure. They forced us to make mistakes. We didn't make is easy for ourselves, either. We didn't make the extra pass in the middle. We played rushed. Overall, I think the first half showed how good they were.”
Even though the second half didn't get easier for the Falcons' defense, the offense continued to attack, pushing to break the standoff.
Two and a half minutes into the second half, senior Amy Horst broke through on the left wing, attacking one-on-one with Clarke. Horst took a shot that deflected off Clarke, who charged on the play to try and make an early stop. With the ball rolling toward the empty goal mouth, Lions' freshman defender Allison Foy charged in from 25 yards out to make the stop on a near game-breaking goal.
TCNJ would eventually shake off the halftime rust and push forward, providing a pair of heart-stopping moments for the Falcons' faithful: Just past the 55th minute, the Lion's left winger crossed a beautiful ball into the middle of the field just on the outside of the Messiah 18-yard box. TCNJ's Annie McCarthy trapped and stepped to the right side of the field where Bletz made a sliding tackle on the ball for a clear out.
Just moments later, the Lions kept their pressure up, as the designated visitors were awarded a corner kick. The ball was played short again to the feet of Grady, who blasted a shot that ricocheted off Cortese's outstretched leg and towards the end line past sophomore keeper Autumn Reilly.
It looked as if the ball was going float into the goal and, it appeared an almost certainty the Falcons would be trailing for the first time in this year's NCAA Tournament.
But that's when Haqq would make her first indelible mark on the game.
As the ball advanced toward the end line for a Lions' score, Haqq stopped the sphere with her head and erased the seemingly inevitable goal from taking place.
It would be part one of a defense-offense masterpiece, all orchestrated by the Belchertown, Mass. native.
With just 24 minutes left in the match, Haqq gained possession near midfield on the right side, juked the pressuring TCNJ defender, and darted down the right flank. With help in the middle, Haqq pinched towards the center of the pitch, dancing between a defender and the end line. Haqq, seeing help, crossed the ball from an impossibly flat angle, some five yards off the endline.
“It was meant to be a cross,” Haqq would say in the post-game press conference.
Perhaps a cross by intent, but it was a goal in result. Haqq's floater somehow chipped over Clarke and landed halfway down the side netting on the far post.
Frey was asked about the goal, immediately after Haqq proclaimed it was an attempted cross.
“It went in,” Frey said, deadpanned. “I thought we were able to expose them in the back a bit, and get around them at times. Our wings did the job for us. Hench(y) was able to run by and I thought (in the second half) they struggled with our pressure up front.”
Messiah was able to finish the last 24:24 with little drama on the defensive end, as TCNJ attempted just one more corner and four final shots – just one of which was on frame.
The only real moment of trepidation occurred with 3:32 remaining, as Messiah's fifth and final corner kick ended with a scary injury to sophomore Leah Sipe, who took a nasty spill after colliding with teammates while attempting a header.
Sipe landed awkwardly on her back and required medical attention, as EMS crews removed the Ephrata, Pa. native on a stretcher as a precaution.
Following the game, Sipe was ruled to have only a concussion, and is not yet ruled out of Saturday's national championship game. That decision will be made before game time, according to Messiah College athletic training personnel.
With the Friday's win, Messiah will face Washington University-St. Louis in Saturday's national championship, as the Bears advanced over Lynchburg College in a 1-1, double-overtime 4-3 penalty-kick decision.
Saturday marks Messiah's fourth championship game appearance in the last five years and fifth in the last seven, while Friday's 1-0 win broke an eight-game shutout streak for TCNJ – a span of more than 12 hours of game time. It was also the seventh time that Messiah and TCNJ met in the NCAA Tournament since the 2000 season. The Falcons recorded their fifth win in that stretch Friday.
Messiah and Washington-St. Louis will meet for the first time in the programs' history at 1 p.m. (CST) Saturday. Live Stats and Live Video of the national championship will be provided at the 'championships central' website. Live Audio will also be provided by WVMM, 90.7 FM.
