CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Bring on the Sweet 16!
Facing the undefeated No. 1 seed on its home field, the Gannon women's soccer team pulled off a huge upset by beating Charleston 3-1 in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region semifinals on Sunday afternoon.
The Golden Eagles entered the game with an 18-0-2 record and had beaten the Golden Knights 4-1 in the second game of the season at GU's McConnell Family Stadium.
However, the postseason is a new season, and this has been evident in Gannon's play throughout the past two weeks.
Coach
Colin Petersen's Gannon team has avenged losses to three teams in the playoffs.
First, GU beat Kutztown 2-0 in the PSAC semifinals on Nov. 10 after losing to the Golden Bears in the NCAA Tournament's second round in 2022.
Then, Gannon defeated archrival Mercyhurst 1-0 in the first round of the Atlantic Regional on Friday. The Lakers had beaten the Knights twice during the regular season.
Finally, the Golden Knights faced their biggest challenge yet when they met Charleston, which had beaten GU soundly on its home field.
"After the first game we played them, I said we have a pretty good chance that we will see them again," Petersen said after Sunday's game. "I took responsibility for that first loss since we could have defended and played for a tie after going 1-1. We had played for the majority of the game with a player down and had good momentum ,so I thought we could've won it. We had put in a lot of energy, and we were tired – my mistake.
"Charleston is a good team, well organized, has talented players and is well coached. There were times in the game where they had the momentum, but we were really good defensively."
Logan Nicklas (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) and
Brooklyn Respecki (McKean, Pa./General McLane) made sure that the Knights' season continued. Nicklas, a senior forward, scored once in the first half and once in the second half. Respecki assisted on Nicklas' first goal, and she scored Gannon's second goal.
Now, Gannon (17-4-2 overall) will face another team that it has a history against when it plays in the Sweet 16 in two weeks. West Chester defeated Kutztown 1-0 on Sunday in the other Atlantic Region semifinal. The Knights will meet the Golden Rams for the Atlantic Region title at a site, date, and time to be announced.
West Chester has beaten Gannon in the past two PSAC championship games, including 2-1 at Kutztown last week. The Rams and Knights will meet for the right to advance to the Elite Eight.
Gannon goals:
The Golden Knights scored just 5:22 into Sunday's game when Respecki stole a pass deep in Charleston's end and fed the ball to Nicklas. She sprinted to the middle, top of the box and lifted a shot over the Charleston goalie for a 1-0 lead.
That was the halftime score as Gannon outshot Charleston 5-0 in the half.
Charleston was much more aggressive offensively early in the second half and had several scoring opportunities.
However, Respecki extended Gannon's lead to 2-0 with 32:12 left in the game when she made a move at the left top of the box, spun, and booted a shot left-footed over the goalie into the right, top of the net.
Charleston responded with a goal shortly after that, but Gannon's defense tightened up after that.
Nicklas concluded the scoring with 15:23 remaining when she took a nice pass from
Gabby Boden (Butler, Pa./Butler) near the top of the box and chipped the ball over goalie just under the crossbar. Boden was credited with the assist.
"I thought we were very good going forward, and I thought a couple more chances could've gone our way," Petersen said. "I'm very proud of our team and coaching staff. Very thankful for our trainer Keith (Webber) who took such good care of the players and all the great support from our fans that traveled and those that were there in spirit."
Defensive strength:
With a 3-1 lead and 15 minutes to go, Gannon protected its lead.
Grad student
Leah Bermudez (Milton, Ontario/Jean Vanier Catholic), senior
Gretchen Oslick (Freedom, Pa./Ambridge), and freshman
Hannah Shepard (Erie, Pa./McDowell) were tough on Gannon's back line, and the midfielders clamped down on Charleston's top scoring threats throughout the match.
As a result, Gannon held Charleston to no shots in the first half. Charleston had eight shots, including six shots on goal, in the second half, but Gannon goalie
Morgan Sinan (Cranberry Twp., Pa./Seneca Valley) made five saves to earn the win.
Petersen referred to something his assistant coach and wife,
Lia Petersen, said about the GU players.
"Lia mentioned that the thing she was most proud of is how well the girls coached each other on the field, and I couldn't agree more," he said. "The game was moving so quickly that the girls had to make decisions and adjustments themselves. By the time we would've communicated these changes, it would have been too late."
