Julian Santiago
Staff Writer
Junior forward Nicole Fowler led the Springfield College women’s soccer team to an easy quarterfinals victory against Coast Guard on Nov. 4, 3-1. Their overall record stands at 11-3-4.
The Pride’s captain and leading goal scorer notched her hat trick just 31 minutes into the match. It was a great night for Fowler and her teammates setting up a huge rematch with Babson on Saturday, Nov. 8 in the NEWMAC semifinals.
The win improved the Pride’s unbeaten streak to an impressive ten games. Throughout those 10 games, and last night in particular, Springfield exhibited determination. The team took a 3-0 lead into half time last, while out shooting the Coast Guard Bears 19-1. This remarkable discrepancy speaks to how well the team is playing in all phases. The Bears were clearly outmatched from the first touch as Fowler gave the Pride a lead within five minutes. The opportunities were plentiful throughout the game and the score easily could have been more lopsided, but the Pride were denied by the cross bar three times.
On the other end senior goalie Lucy Gillett earned another victory splitting time with first-year Ciara Boucher. Gillett kept the Bears off the board with the help of some stellar defense. Boucher let in the lone goal of the game on a tough rebound shot. Overall it was a game that Head Coach John Gibson was rather pleased with.
“I think that we played well last night,” said Gibson. “Our energy levels were good and our intensity was good.”
The connection between the midfield and forwards was seamless, which lead to the plethora of shots. It really was a quality team effort to earn the decisive win.
“The team came out really strong last night,” said Fowler. “Right when the whistle blew everyone was giving 100%.”
Moving forward to the semifinals on Saturday that same effort will be critical if the Pride are to advance to their seventh straight NEWMAC final.
“We have to focus on the individual processes that need to happen in order to be successful. If that happens, everything else will fall into place,” said Fowler.
The last meeting between Babson and the Springfield went into double overtime and ended in a draw. Babson finished third in the conference during the regular season and will certainly provide the Pride with a much bigger challenge.
“If we are to beat Babson and make it to our 7th final in a row we will need to convert more of our chances as they will be harder to create against Babson,” said Gibson.
It should be a great match pushing both teams to their respective limits.
The Pride will travel to MIT on Saturday, Nov. 8 to defend the NEWMAC title against third-seeded Babson College at 2 p.m.
As a friendly reminder to friends, family and fans, there is a fee for admittance to all NEWMAC Championship events. Adults are $4, seniors are $2 and students are $1 with valid student identification card.
If the Springfield College women’s soccer team beats Babson in the NEWMAC Championship Semifinal, they will partake in the NEWMAC Championship game on Sunday, Nov. 9 against an opponent who is yet to be determined. The time of this contest will be released on the Springfield College Athletics website as soon as it is decided.