Women's Soccer Suffers Heartbreak in Conference Finals

BRISTOL, R.I. – For the second straight year, the Endicott women's soccer team suffered a heartbreaking loss in the finals of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) tournament and this year it was again at the hands of Roger Williams University. The second-seeded Hawks got a goal in the 106^th minute on their home turf to break a scoreless tie and beat the \#4 Gulls 1-0.

The goal came from Katie Fusaro (Hopkinton, Mass.) in the 106^th minute after the teams had played to a stalemate through regulation and the first ten minute overtime period.

In the second overtime, the Hawks' Maddy Howard (Medfield, Mass.) sent a long pass from just inside midfield to the right side, over an Endicott defender and hit Fusaro in stride. Fusaro took the ball into the box and fired a shot over Endicott goalkeeper Natalie wyrsch (Dover, N.H.) and into the left corner.

Endicott had a golden opportunity to take the lead in the 84thminute, with a shot by Nicole Fournier (Milford, Mass.) on a net left open by the Hawks' goalkeeper Stephanie Jaques (Burlington, Vt.) However, a heads-up stop by defender Tory Benoit (Shrewsbury, Mass.) kept the Gulls off the board and ultimately sent the game into extra periods.

Fusaro nearly ended the game five minutes earlier than she did, as she received a pass on the right side similar to the one she would score on later. She got the ball behind Wyrsch (Dover, N.H.) but found the left post rather than the back of the net, keeping the game alive.
Endicott outshot Roger Williams 16-13, and took six corner kicks, two more than the hosts.

Wyrsch stopped four shots in the game for Endicott in the loss. Jaques also finished the game with four saves for Roger Williams, picking up her seventh shutout of the season.

Endicott's record falls to 12-8, and the Gulls will anticipate a bid to the ECAC tournament.

Roger Williams (14-6-1) receives the NCAA automatic qualifier, and will find out its region and opponent for the NCAA Tournament on Monday.