NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH 2, FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES 0
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A pair of first half goals, less than a minute apart propelled Notre Dame into the NCAA College Cup with a 2-0 win over Florida State in front of an unfriendly crowd of 2,000 at the Seminole Soccer Complex Friday.
The Irish are making their fourth straight appearance in the College Cup and will face North Carolina on Dec. 4 at the Aggie Soccer Complex in College Station, Texas. A BIG EAST team has advanced to the College Cup 11 times in the past 15 years.
Sophomore forward Melissa Henderson took advantage of a loose ball in the box to give the Irish a 1-0 lead in the 39th minute.
Less than a minute later, senior Hayley Ford rose above the pack to head home a corner kick from junior Rose Augustin corner kick, providing the final 2-0 victory margin. Junior Nikki Weiss turned in an impressive performance in the Irish net that included five saves for her seventh solo shutout of the season.
Both teams had 14 shots, but Notre Dame goalkeeper Nikki Weiss kept the Irish in the game with five saves. The Seminole’s Erin McNulty made one save
The win marked the 19th straight for the Irish (21-3-1), while it ended the Seminoles’ (19-5-1) 18 match home winning streak (dating back to last season) and it also marked FSU’s first ever postseason home game loss (18-1-0).
The matchup against North Carolina will be a rematch of the 2008 national championship held in Cary, N.C. The Tar Heels avenged a regular-season loss to Notre Dame, by winning the December meeting 2-1.
NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS 5, WAKE FOREST DEMON DECONS 2
CHAPEL HILL, NC---Casey Nogueira scored three goals to lead North Carolina to a 5-2 win over Wake Forest at Fetzer Field on Friday . The Tar Heels advance to the NCAA Quarter Finals for 25th time in the last 28 years. The Tar Heels will meet Notre Dame next Friday in the NCAA semifinals in College Station, Texas.
Noguira opened the scoring in the fourth minute, heading in a ball that was played in off a corner. In the 24th minute, Courtney Jones volleyed a ball out of the air to make it 2-0 and Meghan Klingenberg finished a ball to the far post in the 42nd minute to give the Tar Heels a 3-0 halftime lead.
Wake’s Kaley Fountain got one back in the 57th, minute, but Nogueira scored unassisted in the 58th and 61st minutes to finish the 4th hat trick and 11th multi-goal game of her career.
Sarah Winslow scored for Wake in the 74th minute, but it was too little too late. STANFORD CARDINAL 3, BOSTON COLLEGE EAGLES 1
STANFORD, Calif---Kelly O’Hara had two goals and Christen Press had a goal and two assists to give Stanford a 3-1 win over Boston College at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium in the Quarterfinals of the NCAA Women’s Tournament Friday night.
The trip to the Elite Eight was the farthest BC has gone under coach Alison Kulick. Their last trip to the quarterfinals was in 1985.
The Eagles took the lead in the second minute, when Victoria DiMartino centered a ball to Julia Bouchelle who’s shot deflected in off the post.
Number one ranked Stanford took control of the game less than a minute after the Eagles’ score. A shot by Press deflected off the crossbar and was put in by O’Hara in the third minute for her 24th goal of the year.
Press found O’Hara with a through ball in full stride in the 27th minute to break the tie.
The Cardinal put the game out of reach in the 85th minute when Alicia Jenkins played a long ball over the Eagles defense. Press got to the ball and scored as BC goalkeeper Jillian Mastroianni came out. It was Press’ 20th goal of the season.
Stanford peppered BC throughout the game, outshooting the second seeded Eagles 30-5. Mastroianni made 12 saves. Stanford goalkeeper Kira Maker made four saves.
The Cardinal will face the winner of Saturday’s UCLA vs Portland game in a Quartfinal game next Friday in College Station, Tx.
The Eagles finish the season at 18-4-2. The team’s 18 wins is a program record. The most games a BC women’s soccer team had won was 16 in 1999.
Saturday, November 28-Portland Pilots at UCLA Bruins, 8:00 pm ET
