BUFFALO, N.Y. – Concluding regular-season play in Buffalo, the regionally-ranked No. 10 Queens College women's soccer team faced the D'Youville University Saints at Dobson Field in East Coast Conference (ECC) action Saturday afternoon.
After a scoreless first half in which Queens outshot D'Youville 13-3, the Knights broke through in the 51st minute as senior
Jenna Rosenberger scored her first goal of the season, which proved to be the game-winner. Senior goalkeeper
Samantha Hines-Hirsch made three saves to preserve the shutout and lead Queens to a 1-0 victory, closing out the regular season on a high note.
With the victory, Queens improves to 8-4-4 overall and 3-1-3 in ECC play.
MATCH RECAP
D'Youville recorded the opening shot of the contest in the second minute, but the attempt sailed wide of the goal before the Knights began to apply pressure in the attacking third.
Queens recorded seven shots over the next 15 minutes, but attempts from Rosenberger and senior
Ashley Kieblesz were blocked. Rookie
Mia Hanson registered the Knights' first shot on target in the 20th minute, but the Saints' goalkeeper made the save to keep the contest scoreless.
In the 23rd minute, junior
Ava Lekanides put a shot on target toward the upper portion of the goal, but the D'Youville goalkeeper made another save. Senior
Cassidy Pong followed with an attempt off a corner kick, but the Saints' goalkeeper came up with another stop to deny Queens.
The Knights continued to control possession and limit D'Youville's scoring opportunities, holding the Saints to one shot over the final 20 minutes of the first half. Despite Queens' offensive pressure, both teams headed into halftime deadlocked at 0-0.
Queens picked up where it left off to open the second half, as junior
Keeley Harden tested the goalkeeper in the 47th minute before a shot by senior
Kayla Camacho was blocked in the 49th minute.
The Knights finally broke through in the 51st minute. Camacho played a through ball to senior
Anna Tavantzis, who delivered a cross into the box for Rosenberger. The senior finished with a high strike into the middle of the net to give Queens a 1-0 advantage.
D'Youville responded with a brief spell of attacking pressure, but Hines-Hirsch came up with consecutive saves in the 64th and 65th minutes to preserve the Knights' lead.
Hines-Hirsch recorded her third save of the afternoon in the 75th minute, once again denying the Saints and keeping the clean sheet intact.
Behind Hines-Hirsch and the defensive unit, Queens held D'Youville without a shot over the final 15 minutes to secure the 1-0 victory and record the team's ninth shutout of the season.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Queens outshot D'Youville 22-6, including a 6-3 advantage in shots on goal.
- Rosenberger recorded her first goal and first game-winning goal of the season, bringing her season total to four points.
- Tavantzis recorded her fourth assist of the season, bringing her season total to 14 points.
- Camacho registered her third assist of the season.
- Hines-Hirsch made three saves to earn her eighth win of the season and ninth shutout.
- With nine shutouts, Hines-Hirsch moves into a tie for first in the program's single-season record book for most shutouts. The senior also moves into a tie for second in the career record book with 20 shutouts.
Next Match
With the regular season complete, details regarding the East Coast Conference Women's Soccer Championship tournament will be announced shortly.
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), X (Formerly Twitter) (@QCKnights), Instagram (qcknightsny), women's soccer (qcwsoccer)
