West Chester, Pa. - The University of Bridgeport women's soccer team used a strong defensive performance and single goals in each half to win the NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship East Regional for the second straight season with a 2-1 win over the Adelphi University Panthers in a contest played at West Chester University in West Chester, Pa. UB will now face Kutztown (Pa.) University on Sunday at 12 noon in West Chester for a chance to advance to the NCAA Division II Women's Soccer National Championship for the second consecutive year. Last season, the Purple Knights defeated East Stroudsburg, 2-0, in the NCAA quarterfinals after defeating Adelphi by and identical 2-1 score as this season.
Friday's victory is number 16 in a row for the Purple Knights who are now 18-3-0 on the season. Adelphi finished 2016 at 15-4-1.
Senior Shannon Colligan (Greenwich, Conn.) got Bridgeport on the board first when she netted her fourteenth goal of the year off an assist from classmate Hanne Neby (Furnes, Norway)at the 31:39 mark of action.
The score would stay at 1-0 heading into the halftime break. UB senior Flo Gamby (Goffs Oak, England) scored what proved to the game-winning goal when she headed home a free kick from senior Nicola Worthington (Chorley, England) just over nine minutes into the second half. Gamby's goal is her seventh of the season.
The Panthers would make things interesting late in the match when Morgan Santoro sailed home a free kick for her 24th goal of 2016 to make the score 2-1, which proved to be the outcome of the contest.
Bridgeport held Adelphi to only three shots in the first half and a total of nine for the match, as the Purple Knights outshot the Panthers, 12-9.
UB goalkeeper Jennifer Wendelius (Lidingo, Sweden) made three saves to earn her fourteenth win of the year. AU's Anne Marie Ulliac had four stops on the day.
Provided by the Bridgeport Sports Information Department.
