Freshman Dineo Mmutla had two goals and an assist to lead William Smith to a 4-0 win over St. Lawrence
WOMEN'S SOCCER: William Smith and Skidmore to battle for title
BOX SCORE: William Smith 4, St. Lawrence 0
GENEVA, N.Y. – William Smith College freshman Dineo Mmutla scored two goals and earned an assist to lead the top-seeded Herons to a 4-0 win over fourth-seeded St. Lawrence in a Liberty League semifinal Wednesday on Cozzens Field. The Herons improved to 15-0-2 this season.
The Saints finished their season with an 8-6-3 mark. Nationally ranked No. 2 William Smith earned its 14th shutout this fall, and will advance to the Liberty League tournament championship game which will be played against Skidmore on Saturday, Nov. 5 on Cozzens Field at 1 p.m.
Junior Kelsey Hill started off the scoring 19:30 in. The Herons earned a corner kick, which junior Renee Jensen sent into the left side of the box. Mmutla collected the ball and tapped it to Hill, who turned and fired for her first goal this season.
William Smith broke open the game in the second half. Mmutla logged back-to-back goals to stretch the Herons’ lead to 3-0. At the 51 minute mark, senior Chelsea England sent a crossing pass from the left side. The ball bounced off a St. Lawrence defender, but Jensen was able to settle it and push a short pass out in front to Mmutla. Mmutla sent a shot past the Saints’ keeper to put William Smith up 2-0.
Mmutla struck again in the 64th minute. This time she blasted a shot from about 22 yards out into the back of the net. Mmutla has scored five goals in the last three matches. She now leads the Herons with 20 points and eight goals.
In the 73rd minute, first-year Krista Longo scored her fourth goal this season. She collected a loose ball off a St. Lawrence goal kick, and booted a shot into the goal for the final margin.
The Saints did not put a single shot on goal in all 90 minutes. The Herons finished with a 20-4 advantage in shots. St. Lawrence’s best scoring chance came about 12 minutes into the contest. Elena Rogers broke by a William Smith defender for a one-on-one situation with senior goalie Amanda Davis, but Davis snatched the ball away before Rogers could even get a shot off.
Davis did not need to make a single save in 85:34. Davis now ranks third on the William Smith record book with 56 career wins. Sophomore Chelsea Dunay came in to play the final 4:26. Abby van Geldern stopped four shots in all 90 minutes for St. Lawrence. The Herons held a 10-2 lead in corner kicks.
(courtesy Paige Mullin, William Smith Sports Information)
BOX SCORE: Skidmore 2, RIT 0
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – It's off to the Liberty League championship for the Skidmore College women's soccer team after a 2-0 shutout of RIT in a Liberty League semifinal, Wednesday at Wachenheim Field. The second-seeded Thoroughbreds will travel to top-seed William Smith for Saturday's 1 p.m. championship game.
Skidmore is 13-5, while the Tigers, playing in their first Liberty League season, end the year at 8-10.
Abby Benton scored the first goal at 22:26. Kelsey Yam made a long cross to Christine Bellotti who passed on the shot and tapped the ball to Benton who eased it past RIT goalie Ashley Valenti.
Bellotti set-up the second goal with a long ball in the air that Yam headed home from 10 yards out for her team-high sixth goal of the season.
Thoroughbred goalie Meghan Sleezer had seven saves to earn her ninth shutout of the season. It was Skidmore's 12th shutout in 18 games. Sleezer's biggest save came in the 40th minute when she stopped a Rachael Bromson breakaway to preserve the 1-0 lead. She was also tough on several RIT restarts.
Skidmore had a slight 13-11 shot advantage. The Tigers had an 8-6 edge in penalty kicks.
Playing in its seventh straight Liberty League tournament, this will be Skidmore's second appearance in the Liberty League championship game. The previous time was a penalty-kick loss to William Smith after a 0-0 tie in 2008. This will also be the fifth time in six seasons the two teams have faced each other in the league tournament.
(courtesy Bill Jones, Skidmore Sports Information)