The Ithaca College women's soccer team (15-3-3) scored two early goals en route to beating Cortland (14-6-3) 2-0 in an NCAA quarterfinal match. With the win the Bombers advance to the "final four" in San Antonio where they'll face Wheaton (Ill.) Friday in one semifinal with William Smith and Messiah meeting in the other.
The semifinals and final will be held Friday and Saturday at San Antonio's Blossom Soccer Stadium. Ithaca (15-3-3) will face Wheaton [Ill.]. who is 21-1-1 on the season at 1:30 p.m. CDT in the second semifinal with Messiah (21-0-1) meeting William Smith (20-0-1) Friday at 11 a.m. CDT in the other. Friday's winners will play Saturday at 1:30 p.m. for the national championship. The Bombers, who have posted four wins so far in the NCAA playoffs, are making their sixth trip to the final four (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998). Ithaca won the 1990 and 1991 NCAA titles and no school has made more playoff appearances than Ithaca's 22.
Ithaca scored on its first two shots of the match, using first-half goals by junior Rachael Palladino (Lansing/Lansing) and sophomore Ellyn Grant-Keane (Lansing/Lansing) to build its lead before hanging on as the visiting Red Dragons outhot the Bombers 11-9.
Palladino's team-best 15th goal of the season came after sophomore Amanda Callanan (Ballston Spa/Ballston Spa) intercepted a Cortland clearing attempt and chipped the ball ahead to Palladino. Palladino charged the net; with Cortland's goalkeeper coming off the line, she lofted the ball over her head for the game's first goal.
The assist was Callanan's third.
Cortland maintained an edge in possession for the next 20 minutes, but surrendered another goal when freshman Jessie Warren (Medway/Medway, Mass.) sent a short pass to Grant-Keane, who ripped a hard shot from 16 yards out that went into the left side of the net. Grant-Keane has scored seven goals this season; Warren picked up her second assist.
The rest of the game belonged to Ithaca's defense, with junior Becca Salant (Holliston/Holliston, Mass.) making five saves behind a strong effort by sophomore Anna Gray (Delmar/Bethlehem), sophomore Meredith Jones (Gwynedd-Mercy Academy/Lower Gwynedd, Pa.), senior Marla Schilling (Canton/Canton, Conn.), junior Julie Winn (Sutton/Sutton, Mass.), sophomore Alex Liese (Massapequa/Massapequa) and senior Andi Roach (Central Bucks East/Doylestown, Pa.). The Bomber defense recorded their season-best third straight shutout, blanking three opponents -- #16 Ohio Northern, #3 Trinity [Texas] and Cortland) -- who'd scored 190 goals on the season.
Salant now has seven solo shutouts on the season.
The Red Dragons' best scoring opportunity came in the 70th minute when a Cortland forward collected a pass at the 18 and sent a shot over Salant's leap that cleared the cross bar by less than a foot.
Cortland wrapped up the program's 11th NCAA playoff appearance and first in 13 years. Ithaca is in the NCAA championship for the tournament -- no other school has played in more.
The Bombers are making their sixth trip to the "final four" and first since 1998; Ithaca won NCAA titles in 1990 and 1991 and reached the final in 1989.
The rest of the field features top-ranked Messiah and second-ranked William Smith. All four teams in the national semifinals have won NCAA titles: William Smith won the 1988 title (the Herons' captain was goalkeeper Mindy Quigg, who's in her 18th year as Ithaca's head coach), Wheaton won in 2004, 2006 and 2007 and Messiah earned championships in 2005, 2008 and 2009.
Ticket information is available from the San Antonio Sports website.
