Ephs book a return trip to Kansas City after seeing off William Smith on penalties
GENEVA, N.Y. — The Ephs aren't unfamiliar with overtime heartbreak in postseason tournaments. Two years ago, losing out to Johns Hopkins in the Sweet 16; last year they were sent out twice in penalty shootouts both in the NESCAC Championship game and the NCAA Championship game. And after scoring early and conceding late, overtime was the precise direction that Williams' Elite 8 contest against William Smith was headed.
The Ephs opened the scoring on their first clear-cut opportunity of the game in the 8th minute. Natalie Turner-Wyatt roared through the Herron midfield before playing an inch-perfect through ball to match the run of Kristi Kirshe, who then played the simplest of passes to her strike partner Thomas for her to finish into the back of the net via the left post.
Turner-Wyatt was a matter of inches away from doubling the Ephs' lead in the 78th minute, after Kirshe held up the play magnificently before finding the on-rushing freshman. The Brooklyn-native bent her shot around the body of Veronica Romines, but she couldn't quite beat the post.
The Herrons toiled for almost 80 minutes until they finally converted one of their 13 corners, when MacKenzie Smith swung in a cross to the back post for Zoe Jackon Gibson to head back across the face of goal for Shay Callahan to nod home past Tressa Palcheck in goal.
The two teams then played 20 minutes of overtime, but neither side could find the back of the net, forcing a penalty shootout.
With the memories of last year on all of the returning players' minds, it was a first-year substitute who made all the difference, as freshman goalkeeper, Olivia Barnhill, denied every Herron who stepped up to take a penalty, and with conversions from Mai Mitsuyama, Kirshe, and Natasha Albaneze, the Ephs booked their return to Kansas City, putting their demons from last year to bed.
The Ephs (now 19-1-2) will play Centre College in almost two weeks time on Friday, December 4th at 2:30PM.
