Herons top Vassar 3-0 to advance to Liberty League tournament championship
The Brewers were the tournament's fourth seed and finished the year with a 9-8-2 overall record. The Liberty League tournament championship will be played on Cozzens field, the home of the top-seeded Herons, for the seventh year in a row. It will take place on Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 p.m. William Smith will take on the winner of the No. 2 Skidmore vs. No. 3 RIT semifinal being played in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., today at 4 p.m.
The Herons controlled the momentum of the match, out-shooting Vassar 30-5. William Smith limited the Brewers to just two shots in the first half. However, Vassar's best scoring chance of the game came on its very first shot. After a Brewer corner in the 11th minute, Lucy Brainerd blasted a shot on goal just inside the right post, but William Smith senior goalie Chelsea Dunay stepped up to make the big save.
The Herons finally broke through in the 38th minute. First-year Emma Diehl took a corner kick for William Smith and found junior Madeline Buckley who placed a shot into the back of the net from about 18 yards out. Buckley leads the Herons with eight goals this season.
With 2:01 before the break, first-year Shay Callahan put William Smith up 2-0. First-year MacKenzie Smith pushed a long pass up the field, and an on-rushing Callahan was able to get to the ball, breaking through the Brewer back line for a one-on-one with keeper, Stephanie Tapolsky. Callahan fired her shot into the back of the net for her second goal this season.
In the 59th minute, Buckley tapped a short pass to junior Krista Longo, who drilled a hard shot from just inside the right side of the box into the far left corner of the goal. It was Longo's sixth goal this season.
Dunay played all 90 minutes in goal and stopped all three shots she faced to earn her 12th shutout this year. It was the 14th clean sheet for William Smith this season. Tapolsky finished with nine saves in goal for Vassar. The Herons finished with a 10-2 advantage in corners.
