Sports > November 29, 2007

By Greg Mantell | Staff writer

After an auspicious 2-1 victory over the Boston University Terriers in their first game of the 2007 NCAA Women’s Soccer Championships, the women’s soccer team fell to the No. 24 Connecticut Huskies, 1-0.

The loss ended the women’s soccer season, and marked yet another upset in an already topsy-turvy tournament. Only one No. 1 seed (UCLA) advances into the Elite Eight.

The 18th-ranked Demon Deacons received a No. 4 seed coming into postseason play and, as a result, competed in their first round match in Chestnut Hill, Mass., only five minutes away from the BU campus. The road atmosphere didn’t seem to affect the team much, as the Deacs attacked the Terriers early, launching eight shots in the first half. At the six minute mark, freshman Samantha Germano sent a cross to junior Amy Smerdzinski, who fired the ball past BU goalkeeper Christina Reuter to give Wake a one-goal lead. It was the fifth goal of the season for Smerdzinski, the team’s second leading scorer. The team’s leading scorer, sophomore Jill Hutchinson, saw her first action on the field since sustaining an injury against N.C. State Nov. 1, sidelining her for the ACC tournament. She played 49 minutes, recording one shot on net.

The Terriers struck back in the 49th minute when Mara Osher shot a cross past freshman keeper Amanda Barasha, evening the match at 1-1. Six minutes later, the Deacs would take the lead for good as sophomore Allie Sadow rebounded a Reuter save to net her first game-winner of the season. The Terriers had scoring chances in the 24th and 85th minute, but the stifling Demon Deacon defense held them to only four shots on net for the entire game.

Two days later, the Deacs faced off against the UConn Huskies, who had just upset host Boston College on penalty kicks, 5-4. The second round match marked only the second time that the two teams faced, the last being a regular season game at UConn in 2003. The game ended in a scoreless tie. This Nov. 18 match also had very little offense, as the first half featured only two shots on net. However, each team would explode offensively in the game’s final 45 minutes, combining for six shots on goal. In the 62nd minute, UConn forward Elizabeth Eng scored on a breakaway to net the eventual game-winner. The Deacons had their best scoring chance in the 84th minute when sophomore Caitlin Farrell fired a shot towards the crossbar. But Huskies keeper Stephanie Labbe knocked the ball over the net, as UConn then gained possession on the ensuing corner kick to preserve the 1-0 victory. The Huskies would go on to score another stunning upset over top-seeded Stanford, winning 2-0.

The Demon Deacons, on the other hand, finish their season with a 13-7-3 record.