Capital's Historic Season Still in Progress
The Capital University women's soccer team has seen a great deal of success throughout its 2013 campaign.
From winning the Ohio Athletic Conference regular season title, to their current run through the NCAA Division III Tournament, the Crusaders have seen records fall and their team rise at just the right time.
Non-Conference Regular Season
The Crusaders opened the season with a stellar cast of veteran and newcomers on the roster, to which they had several early season tests right out of the gates.
First up was a pair of NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago in Carnegie Mellon (Pa.) and Penn St.-Behrend, as Capital faced both in back-to-back matches in the Herb Lauffer Memorial Tournament.
Carnegie Mellon posed a bit of a challenge for Capital in the lid lifter of its 2013 season, as the Tartans defeated the Crusaders, 3-2.
A 2-2 draw against Penn St.-Behrend led to the Crusaders splitting on the road against two tough non-conference opponents.
Hosting the Fort Rapids Inivte proved to be a good confidence builder for the team as well, as they outscored Berry (Ga.) and Shenandoah (Va.) a combined, 6-1, in two matches.
Capital's marquee non-conference victory came at then-No. 14 nationally ranked Thomas More (Ky.) on Sept. 11, as the Crusaders defeated the Saints, 2-1, in double overtime.
A game-tying goal by freshman forward Monique Hanayik (Sidney, Ohio) late in the first half helped the Crusaders stay even with the Saints, until senior forward Hilary Ells (Grandview Heights, Ohio) netted the decisive goal in the 108th minute.
With the win, Capital earned a No. 22 ranking in the NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division III National Poll the following week.
From that point forward, the Crusaders defeated four of their remaining five non-conference opponents, including four shutout victories, en route to a 7-2-1 mark heading into the OAC regular season schedule.
OAC Regular Season
As OAC play began, the Crusaders had won its last two matches of the non-conference schedule, looking to extend the streak as conference play opened up.
That they did, facing John Carroll, the team who ended Capital's hopes of an OAC Tournament run in a quarterfinals match a season ago, came to Bernlohr Stadium for what would be the first of two meetings this season between the two teams.
Capital defeated John Carroll, 2-0, and then went on to prove to be victorious by the same margin in its following match against Heidelberg.
A challenging stretch of three straight road games in the middle of October would follow, leading to the Crusaders falling 2-1 at Wilmington, followed by a 2-1 win at Mount Union and a 2-0 loss at Ohio Northern.
So with the Crusaders now sitting at 10-4 overall (3-2 OAC), and with just four regular season games remaining, they needed to rebound back on home turf with a victory over Marietta.
Once again the Crusaders stepped up to the challenge, as Ells scored four first half goals, the most in a Capital women's soccer game since 1999.
Capital went on to win, 5-0, and did not look back the remainder of the season, sparking a four game win streak to end the regular season, including the beginning of its current 10-game unbeaten streak.
The Crusaders final regular season game was for the rights to the regular season OAC championship, as they hosted cross-town rival Otterbein for the first time since last season's 2-1 loss on the road.
Neither team scored through the first 43 minutes of play, until freshman midfielder Claire Quinn (Coto de Caza, Calif.) netted the lone goal of the match over the Cardinals goalkeeper, helping Capital capture the 2013 OAC regular season championship.
With a 14-4-1 overall record (7-2 OAC), the Crusaders earned the No. 1 seed in the OAC Tournament, punching their ticket to play host in an OAC Tournament semifinal match.
OAC Tournament
Facing the same opponent in less than a week is tough enough as is, but the Crusaders were up to the task, as they once again hosted cross-town rival Otterbein, this time for the rights to a spot in the OAC Tournament Championship game.
Capital inked the board early on in the match, as senior forward/midfielder Livvy Hein (Worthington, Ohio) scored the lone goal of the match, helping the Crusaders edge the Cardinals for the second straight game, 1-0.
Then in the OAC Tournament Championship, the Crusaders continued their winning ways, scoring a pair of goals in each half, en route to earing the OAC Tournament Championship.
A total of five seniors, including Ells, Katie Freshour (North Canton, Ohio), Alyssa Goodnight (Atlanta, Ind.), Hein and Lauren Roy (Toledo, Ohio) recorded either a goal or an assist in their final game at Bernlohr Stadium.
With the win, the team earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
NCAA Tournament
Round one of the NCAA Tournament took the Crusaders to Wisconsin, where they faced the University of Chicago, a team that had also received national attention in the NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division III National Poll.
Neither team managed to manufacture a goal in regulation, then extending that mark through the initial overtime period, forcing a second overtime in which the Crusaders took full advantage of.
Following an assist by freshman midfielder Claire Quinn (Temecula, Calif.) shortly into the second overtime, sophomore midfielder/defender Mariah Richards (Canton, Ohio) netted the lone goal of the match, advancing the Crusaders on to the Round of 32.
Senior goalkeeper Maggie Donnellan (Kings Mills, Ohio) stopped all five shots on goal that she faced in the match, while also recording her fourth straight shutout victory.
In their Round of 32 match, the Crusaders took on unbeaten and then-No. 16 nationally ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, a game which was moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin following inclement weather that swept across the Midwest that entire weekend.
Once again, Richards' goal proved to be the game-winner, this time scored in the 44 minutes into the opening half, as senior Michelle Geiger (Cincinnati, Ohio) dished out the assist following a free kick.
Donnellan was superb in goal again, stopping all six shots on goal en route to her fifth consecutive shutout win.
With that victory, the Crusaders recorded the program's best win total (18), trumping the previous record (17) set back in 1998.
Then in the Round of 16 in St. Louis, Missouri, Capital faced a familiar opponent in No. 14 nationally ranked Thomas More, a team which had not lost since falling, 2-1, at home against the Crusaders in September.
So with a victory against the Saints already in their favor, the Crusaders had confidence in taking on such an impressive opponent.
Roy got the Crusaders on the board with a goal in the 30th minute of play, following a rebound in the box and assist by fellow senior defender Corey McClellan (Columbus, Ohio).
The Crusaders then extended their lead in the 76th minute, as freshman forward Monique Hanayik (Sidney, Ohio) scored the team's second goal off an assist from sophomore midfielder Allison Mervau (Micanopy, Fla.).
Just two minutes later, the Saints scored on a penalty kick to cut the deficit to one goal, but to no avail, as the Crusaders held on for another historic victory.
As Capital entered their next quarterfinals match on Nov. 24, they were set to face host and No. 1 nationally ranked Washington University (Mo.) for a spot among the final four teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament.
After falling behind 1-0 in the first ten minute of play, the Crusaders evened the score at 1-1 in the 67th minute following a free kick from Quinn, who netted the biggest goal of her Capital career.
Stellar defense from both teams sent the game into a pair of overtime periods, to which neither team managed to score, sending the game into a shootout.
In the shootout, the Crusaders made three of four shots, with the bigger story being Donnellan stopping three of the Bears five shots, while also shedding the goalkeeper gloves to score the third and decisive penalty kick in the shootout.
Donnellan also finished with a career high 18 saves, as the Bears outshot the Crusaders 38-8 for the game.
Since the Crusaders entered the NCAA Tournament unranked, they have defeated three straight nationally ranked opponents on their way to the national semifinals.
Capital (19-4-2 overall) is now set to play William Smith (21-1 overall) in an NCAA Division III Tournament semifinal match on Dec. 6 at 12 p.m. EST (11 p.m. CST) in San Antonio, Texas.
The winner of Friday's game will face the winner of Middlebury (Vt.) – Trinity (Tx.) semifinal match on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. EST (1:30 p.m. CST) for the NCAA Division III National Championship.
For the latest news and updates regarding the Capital University women's soccer team's historic run in the NCAA Tournament, log-on to athletics.capital.edu.
