Box Score Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. - The light fog and steady downpour of rain coming off the Hudson on to Mavericks Field in Dobbs Ferry may have reminded QC Head Coach, Carl Christian of his native England, but his thoughts of nostalgia were thwarted as the Knights fell to Mercy, 3-2, in overtime, in the East Coast Conference semifinal.
When these two schools met during the regular season, the Mavericks prevailed 2-0, and perhaps that was on the mind of the Knights, but Queens has been hot lately, upsetting #16 Bridgeport and LIU Post to earn the three seed and earn the right to face Mercy. And early on in an action-packed, evenly played game, it was the Knights on the offensive and they were rewarded by a Mercy mistake in the 22nd minute.
On a ball dumped deep into the Mavericks end, the Mercy goalie came off her line to play the ball and collided with her defensive player. From there, Knights forward Ashley Martin sprinted down the field and slipped past the two fallen players to gently flick the ball into the goal to put Queens ahead, 1-0.
Mercy had a chance at the equalizer in the 43rd minute when Queens was whistled for a foul in the box, giving the Mavericks a penalty kick. On the ensuing penalty, Crystal Mena's attempt hit the crossbar and was eventually deflected to safety. The Knights took a 1-0 lead into halftime.
The first half was full action and both sides had scoring chances that brought the capacity crowd to their feet. In fact, the QC men's soccer team and softball team both showed up to support their Knights.
The second half gave the Mavericks' fans in attendance plenty to cheer for as Mercy had a second penalty kick in the 59th minute. This time, Mackenzie Cochrane wouldn't be denied as she scored and tied the game at 1-1.
Like a good heavyweight prizefight, Queen answered the bell nearly two minutes later. Gena Koutsounadis put a long ball ahead of the defense and Lorena Russi gathered it in and scored on the breakaway. Queens had a 2-1 advantage.
Less than ten minutes later, the Mavericks showed some moxie and evened the score as Viridiana Ortego put a through ball for Jessica Carillo who scored.
The score was tied at 2-all with 30 minutes remaining and both sides kept the offensive onslaught . In fact, with20 minutes left, Russi got a breakaway and her shot was parried by Mercy goalie, Nicole Augustine. From there, substitute Kristina Gabrielsen buried the rebound in the back of the box, but the goal was disallowed due to offside.
In 78th minute, First Team All-ECC selection Jessica Carillo had a breakaway for Mercy, but her shot was denied by QC goalie and Second Team honoree, Mersina Onesto. Less than a minute later, the two hooked up again and for the second time, Onesto made the save to keep the game even.
Regulation ended in a 2-2 tie and the game went into overtime. In the extra period, a deflected shot resulted in a loose ball in front of the Queens goal.
Mercy player, Jennifer Vega, was Johnny-on-the-spot and outhustled the Knights defenders to the ball and buried the game-winner in the back of the net.
The Knights finished the 2013 season with an overall record of 11-6-1.
