No. 2 Wilkes Women's Soccer Ready for MAC Freedom Championship Rematch with No. 1 Misericordia
WILKES-BARRE – The No. 2 seeded Wilkes University women's soccer team heads to No. 1 seed Misericordia on Saturday, November 3rd at 5:00 p.m. to determine who wins the 2018 Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) tournament and earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Ticket prices set by the MAC office are $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $2 for students (with ID), and free for children under six years of age.
Live Stats and video links for fans who are unable to attend are provided below:
Live Stats
Live Video
The Colonels return to the conference championship game for the second straight year and the third time in the last four seasons. Wilkes looks to capture the program's second conference championship, the first since 2005, after defeating DeSales 2-1 in the semifinals on Wednesday night at Schmidt Stadium.
The Cougars are making their seventh championship game appearance in the past eight years and are searching for the program's sixth MAC Freedom title. Misericordia advanced after coming from behind to beat No. 4 seed FDU-Florham 2-1 Wednesday night in Dallas, Pa.
This is a rematch of last year's conference championship game that Misericordia won 1-0 in double overtime. The Cougars came to Schmidt Stadium on October 16th with both teams tied for first-place in the MAC Freedom and handed the Colonels a 3-0 loss, their first MAC Freedom defeat of the season.
Wilkes entered the MAC Freedom Tournament as the No. 2 seed after going 5-2 in conference during the regular season and finishing with a 9-6-2 overall record under first-year head coach John McNichol.
Offensively, the Colonels are averaging 1.65 goals per game, good for third in the MAC Freedom. They are led by 2018 MAC Freedom First-Team selection Nicolette Towlen (Ewing, NJ/Ewing), who ranks first on the team with seven goals and 17 points. Jessica Egan (West Long Branch, NJ/Shore Regional), another MAC Freedom First-Team honoree, trails Towlen with five goals this season, four of which were game winners. Midfielder Emily Wirth (Vestal, NY/Vestal) was a Second-Team all-conference selection and is second on the team in shots with 35.
Defensively, Goalkeeper Samantha Cecere (Batavia, NY/Batavia) was a MAC Freedom Second-Team honoree after starting 12 games for the navy and gold. Her 1.06 goals against average and .783 save percentage rank third and fourth in the MAC Freedom respectively. Sophomore Niamh Harkins (Pennington, NJ/Hopewell Valley) was selected to the MAC Freedom First-Team for the second year in a row and helps lead a backline that only allowed 1.00 goals per game in conference play.
Misericordia is ranked No. 9 in Division III and No. 3 in the Mid-Atlantic region in the latest United Soccer Coaches national poll. The Cougars entered the MAC Freedom tournament as the No. 1 seed after going 7-0 in conference play and 14-2-1 overall.
Goalkeeper Alexis Benedetto was named to the MAC Freedom First-Team after posting eight clean sheets and allowing just seven goals this season, with only two coming in conference. Senior defender Kristen Ritter was named this year's Defensive Player of the Year marking the third time she has received the honor. She was joined on the first-team by freshman Kaylee Sturans who was also recognized as the conference's Rookie of the Year. Another key member of this strong defensive unit is senior Evelyn Logie who earned second-team honors.
Misericordia's offense leads the MAC Freedom in goals per game (3.06), shots per game (22.9) and shots on goal per game (11.7). They are led by the Offensive Player of the Year Hannah Larkin who finished the regular season with eight goals and five assists. Larkin was joined on the first-team by teammates Ashley Edgell (seven goals, four assists) and Jeanna Orfanos (eight goals and five assists).
A Wilkes victory on Saturday would earn the program their third trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
