Ravens defense keeps shutout streak intact for 1-0 victory over #19 West Chester (Pa.)

Boxscore

ALBANY, N.Y. (November 18, 2007) - Franklin Pierce University, ranked 16^th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas Division II coaches' poll advanced to its NCAA Division II record 14^th Final Four with a 1-0 victory over 19^th-ranked West Chester (Pa.) University in quarterfinal round action of the NCAA Tournament at the Albany Academy for Girls this afternoon.

Franklin Pierce (17-1-5) returns to the Final Four for the 14^th time in 16 years after a one-year absence. West Chester (17-3-3), which captured its third-straight Northeast Regional title on Friday, posted a 2-1 victory over Frankin Pierce in last year's quarterfinal in Pennsylvania after the Ravens notched 2-1 triumph over the Golden Rams in 2005 in Rindge, N.H.

"They had a lot more control of the ball and played a lot faster than last year," said West Chester sophomore Rita Alton (Lock Haven, Pa./Central Mountain) of the difference from last year's WCU victory.

Franklin Pierce will face No. 2-ranked Seattle Pacific University (23-0-0) in a National Semifinal, hosted by the University of West Florida, on Thursday, November 29, in Orange Beach, Ala. The Far West Region champion Falcons reached the Final Four with a 4-0 victory over Midwest champs Incarnate Word (Texas) yesterday.

"We've had to win four games on the road to get here," said Franklin Pierce Head Coach Jeff Bailey, who has guided the Ravens to ten Final Fours. "It's definitely doing it the hard way. I think we've gotten some of the breaks in the latter part of the season where early in the year everything seemed to be going wrong. Games we were dominating we couldn't score. It seems like things are turning our way."

The Franklin Pierce women join the men's program, who earned a semifinal berth with a 2-1 win over defending national champion Dowling last night, at the Final Four for the second time in three years. The Raven soccer programs both earned spots at the 2005 National Championships in Wichita Falls, Texas.

Franklin Pierce's defense rose to the occasion again in this postseason, limiting West Chester to just two shots (one each half) and extending its scoreless streak to 588:11 dating back to the 62^nd minute of the Ravens 5-2 victory over Southern Connecticut State University in their regular season finale on October 20. The Ravens have not conceded a goal in postseason play - a streak of 560-minutes.

"Their four backs did a good job in dropping off every time we won the ball and not allowing us to play behind them," said West Chester Head Coach Betty Ann Kempf Townsley. "Franklin Pierce has a very technical game and their speed of play was at a higher level."

Junior goalkeeper Brittany Ester (Toms River, N.J./Toms River East) was the benefactor of the strong defensive effort to post her Northeast-10 Conference leading 11^th shutout of the season - moving her into fourth on Franklin Pierce's single-season list. Ester's lone save of the match was a big one as she charged off her line to smother a one-on-one attempt by freshman Jessica Bennett (Littletown, Pa./Gettysburg) in the 80^th minute. Junior Brittany Barnes (Kennett Square, Pa./Unionville) gave West Chester a chance at a possible counter attack strike with nine saves.

Franklin Pierce dominated possession for most of the match and out-shot WCU 12-2 (10-1 on target) on the afternoon. The Ravens capitalized on a sustained period of possession 5:22 before halftime for the lone goal of the match. Sophomore Mackenzie Bulych (Regina, Saskatchewan/Dr. Martin LeBoldus) had a through ball blocked by the West Chester defense at the top of the 18, but the ball rolled to sophomore All-American Shona Franklin (Leicester, England) who fired a volley to Barnes' right from the left side of the penalty area.

"I thought we played much better today than on Friday," said Bailey. "We controlled the game right from the start, unfortunately we only put one in. It would have been nice to get a second because they were always dangerous on the counter attack."

Barnes came up with a great save in the 47^th minute, making a diving stop of a one-on-one shot from close range by Franklin Pierce senior Thatiane Preisler (Curitiba, Brazil). Senior All-American Gabriela Demoner (Curitiba, Brazil) nearly netted an insurance goal for the Ravens in the 77^th minute, but slipped inside the six with an open net after she deked Barnes at the left post.

The four-straight shutouts are a single-season program record in NCAA Tournament play for Franklin Pierce. It marks just the second time in program history the Ravens have posted four-straight NCAA Tournament shutouts overall, matching a string of four-straight clean sheets over the 1995 & '96 National Championship seasons. The Ravens also improved to 5-0-2 this season against nationally-ranked opponents - yielding just one goal in 670-minutes played against ranked opposition (0.13 goals against average).