Women’s soccer posted two 1-0 shutouts this past week on the road to Manhattan on Wednesday and at Hesse Field on the Great Lawn on Saturday night versus Siena, bumping their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) record to 3-1-0.
The Hawks traveled up to Riverdale, New York on Wednesday to compete against the Manhattan Jaspers. The two teams were deadlocked at 0-0 for 90 minutes, and the match went into overtime.
In the 100th minute, junior forward Dana Scheriff scored a goal, propelling Monmouth to overtime victory. Sophomore defender Sarina Jones set up the play by running down the right sideline and crossing the ball to junior midfielder Lexie Palladino, who sent a low shot on goal. The effort was blocked by Manhattan’s goalkeeper, but the ball ricocheted back out right in front of Scheriff, who then scored into the empty net.
The Hawks generated most of the action throughout the game and outshot the Jaspers 25-1 including an 8-1 shots on goal advantage. Manhattan only had one corner kick opportunity compared to the Hawks eight.
“We gutted out a win on the road. We created a lot of chances all night and did a great job minimizing their opportunities,” said Head Coach Krissy Turner.
The team is now 1-1-1 in 2018 overtime games. Monmouth has yet to lose a game to Manhattan, their all-time series record has risen to 9-0-0.
Monmouth returned home on Saturday where they welcomed Siena to West Long Branch.
About 15 minutes into the game, there was a technical difficulty that caused all of the field’s overhead lights to go out. The officials stopped the game, and the lights came on about 20 minutes later.
“It was a good thing, it actually helped,” Turner said. “It gave us a chance to regroup and talk about our game plan.”
The Hawks’ focused on a playstyle that involved quick passing, no one player held onto the ball for too long. Monmouth’s one and only goal of the match was a result of this technique. The play began with freshman midfielder Jill Conklin, who passed the ball towards the end line to Scheriff. Scheriff set the ball up inside of the penalty area for Palladino, who ran up and volleyed a shot into the back of the net.
Palladino’s goal was what allowed Monmouth to end the match with a victory. The 21st-minute strike was her team-leading fifth goal of the season.
She said, “We battled really hard, and although we had chances to finish them, we just kept going and didn’t give up.”
Siena junior goalkeeper Taylor Dorado made 12 saves throughout the match. She was a key figure in the Saints’ effort to hold Monmouth to just one goal in the defeat. Turner said that Dorado’s performance in goal was amazing.
The Hawks improved their regular season record to 8-3-1 to with the win.
“Tonight was a terrific performance. The coaching staff is very proud of the team [and] of the quality of soccer we are playing right now,” said Turner.
Monmouth will travel to Buffalo, NY next for a match against Canisius this afternoon at the Demske Sports Complex. The game will be broadcasted live on ESPN+ and kickoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.
PHOTO COURTESY of Monmouth Athletics
