PREVIEW: Women’s Soccer Opens Pursuit of Eighth NE10 Title with Quarterfinal Contest vs. Pace
RINDGE, N.H. (October 30, 2017) – Following a two-year hiatus, the Franklin Pierce University women's soccer team will return to the Northeast-10 Conference Championship for its 15th all-time appearance on Tuesday afternoon. The Ravens, who are the fourth seed, will open pursuit of their Conference-record eighth NE10 title, when they host fifth-seeded Pace in the quarterfinal round. Opening kickoff is set for 4 p.m. at Sodexo Field.
Franklin Pierce (10-3-2, 9-3-2 NE10) has been resurgent in 2017, and will look to continue building upon the program's lengthy legacy within the league. The Ravens are fourth all-time in NE10 history in Championship appearances, with their 15th trip trailing only Merrimack (31st appearance), Saint Anselm (20 appearances) and Saint Rose (18th appearance). Franklin Pierce has advanced to the title game on 10 occasions, which ranks second all-time behind only Merrimack, which has 14 trips to the final. The Ravens have the highest NE10 Championship winning percentage among active schools at .806 (29-7-0), and their seven NE10 titles -- which came consecutively from 2000 through 2006 -- are tied with Saint Rose for the most in league annals. Franklin Pierce's last trip to the title game came in 2010, when they fell to Saint Rose, 3-0 (game story). Tuesday will mark the Ravens' first home postseason game since a 3-1 win over Adelphi in the quarterfinal round of the 2010 NE10 Championship (game story).
Meanwhile, Pace (9-8-1, 8-5-1 NE10) returns to the NE10 Championship for the second straight year and the seventh time overall. The Setters had been 0-5 in five trips to the conference tournament before last year's run to the championship game. Pace now holds a 2-6-0 all-time record (.250 winning percentage) in eight NE10 Championship games, and last year's runner-up finish marked the team's first trip to the title game. The Setters were defeated in the 2016 final by Stonehill, 2-1, on a goal by Lauren Kapatoes with just 99 seconds to play in regulation (game story).
Scouting the Ravens
Franklin Pierce (schedule) opened the season on a 3-0-1 stretch before suffering through a 1-2-1 segment, which included surrendering a late game-winner at home against Southern New Hampshire (game story), a 3-1 loss at Stonehill (game story) and a goal in the last 10 minutes by Assumption to force a 1-1 tie (game story). However, the Ravens have hit their stride since the calendar turned to October and have put together a 6-1-0 mark in the season's final month, including signature road wins at Saint Rose (game story) and No. 6 nationally ranked Adelphi (game story).
Franklin Pierce was ranked fifth in the East Region a week ago, which puts the team squarely on the bubble in terms of NCAA Championship selection. Six teams will qualify for the East Regional, with each of the region's three conferences -- the NE10, the East Coast Conference and the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference -- guaranteed an automatic bid for their tournament champion. However, the CACC does not currently have a team ranked in the top six, which means the league's champion will take the sixth and final seed in the East Region, leaving only five spots up for grabs. If Franklin Pierce does not take home the NE10 title itself, the Ravens will be hoping the teams in front of them in the rankings -- Adelphi, Mercy, LIU Post and Southern New Hampshire -- combine to take home the NE10 and ECC crowns. Conference titles taken by teams which are not regionally ranked would effectively leave fewer NCAA berths available. Updated East Region rankings will be released on Wednesday.
On the field, the Ravens have excelled at goal prevention, with a defense which ranks third in the NE10 in goals-against average (0.77), as they have surrendered just 12 goals in 15 games. The back line has helped usher the crimson and grey to seven shutouts, including five 1-0 victories, on the season. Franklin Pierce also sits in the top third in the league in offense, averaging 1.60 goals per game. Junior midfielder Nathalia Maria da Silva (Sao Paulo, Brazil) leads the charge with six goals on the year, while sophomore midfielder Gabi Pereira (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) has added 12 points of her own on five goals and two assists. Newer to the lineup is sophomore midfielder Veronica Marques (Sao Paulo, Brazil), who has exploded onto the scene with four goals and two assists in her first four games as a Raven.
Senior goalkeeper Casey Cook (Beverly, Mass.) has played every minute of the season in net for the Ravens. She ranks fourth in the NE10 in goals-against average (0.77) and has posted an .800 save percentage on the campaign.
Scouting the Setters
On the other side of the ledger, Pace (schedule) has alternated wins and losses over its previous seven games, which serves as a microcosm of the team's 9-8-1 campaign. The Setters started off 2-4-0, but have turned things into an above-.500 record heading into the postseason. Pace has made hay at home in 2017, with a 5-1-1 record at Pace Stadium, but has been much less threatening on the road, at 4-6-0.
The Setters were ranked just behind the Ravens, in sixth, in the most recent NCAA East Region rankings. Like Franklin Pierce, Pace's most sure path into the NCAA Championship field is to win the NE10 title, but a deep run in this week's tournament could see the Setters through. The fates of both the Ravens and Setters are firmly intertwined with each other, which makes Tuesday afternoon's match pivotal regarding the NCAA selection process.
Much like the Ravens, Pace's strength comes from its defense, which is currently ranked sixth in the NE10, allowing 1.08 goals per game. By contrast, the Setters have struggled to find the net themselves with any regularity, averaging just 1.28 goals per game, which ranks 11th in the 15-team league. Junior forward Victoria Kealy keys the Pace offense with 17 points on seven goals and three assists, while senior midfielder Emma Sinanan has put home five goals of her own.
Senior netminder Hayley Pascoal has seen the lion's share of minutes in front of the Pace goal. She comes into Tuesday afternoon's game ranked third in the NE10 in save percentage (.859) and fifth in goals-against average (0.81).
Earlier this Season
The two teams met for their regular-season contest on Oct. 14 at Pace Stadium, with the homestanding Setters pulling out a 1-0 victory (game story), dealing Franklin Pierce its only loss so far in the month of October. Franklin Pierce posted a 16-8 edge in shot attempts in the game, but Kealy found the game's only goal, in the 76th minute. Cook made five saves in defeat, while Pascoal turned in a four-save performance in the win.
Previously in the Postseason
The Ravens and the Setters have previously met twice in the postseason, with both meetings occurring in the quarterfinal round of the NE10 Championship and Franklin Pierce winning via shutout on both occasions.
The two teams have not met in the postseason since the quarterfinal round of the 2003 NE10 Championship in Rindge, when the Ravens blew the doors off the Setters in a 6-0 victory (game story). NE10 Hall of Famer Laura Hislop piled up seven points in the game, on three goals and an assist, while Meghan Welcome added a goal and three assists for five points.
It marked the second straight year Franklin Pierce blanked Pace in the NE10 Championship's opening round, as the Ravens also took care of the Setters in 2002, also in Rindge. Nicole Cheadle, Welcome and Anumari Ylesmaki provided the goals in a 3-0 Franklin Pierce win (game story).
Headed to the Game?
If you plan on making the trip to Rindge on Tuesday afternoon, directions to Franklin Pierce and maps of the Rindge campus can be found here: http://www.franklinpierce.edu/directions.htm
Ticket prices are set as follows:
Adults - $6
Children/Seniors - $4
Students (with valid ID from NE10 institutions) - $1
Franklin Pierce students (with valid ID) will be admitted free of charge, courtesy of the Department of Athletics
Per Conference policy, no additional complimentary admissions will be issued.
How to Follow Along
If you prefer to follow the action from home, from work or from elsewhere, both live video and live stats will be available.
Live stats: http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/sports/wsoc/2017-18/boxscores/20171031_zfdt.xml
Video (pay-per-view): https://boxcast.tv/view/womens-soccer-vs-pace-ne10-quarterfinal-259324
Up Next
The winner of Tuesday's quarterfinal will advance to meet the winner of another Tuesday quarterfinal, featuring top-seeded Adelphi and eighth-seeded Merrimack, who will meet at 4 p.m. as well, at Motamed Field in Garden City, N.Y. The top seed hosts the semifinal contest, so Franklin Pierce or Pace would either travel to Adelphi or play host to Merrimack. The semifinal round of the NE10 Championship is slated for Friday, Nov. 3, with game times to be determined.
Tuesday's other quarterfinals feature second-seeded Southern New Hampshire hosting seventh-seeded Bentley at 4 p.m. at Larkin Field in Manchester, N.H., and six seed Assumption paying a visit to three seed Saint Rose for a 7 p.m. kickoff at Plumeri Sports Complex in Albany, N.Y.
For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce soccer apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).