DOYLESTOWN, Pa. – Despite outshooting Delaware Valley University by a 13-3 margin, the Manhattanville College women's soccer team could only manage a 1-1 (2OT) tie in MAC Freedom action on Saturday afternoon at Robert A. Lipinski Field.
With the tie, Manhattanville (5-9-1, 1-4-1 MAC Freedom) remained mathematically alive in the race for the postseason temporarily, but the team was officially eliminated from playoff contention later in the night when King's (Pa.) College defeated Eastern University. Manhattanville can at best finish in a three-way tie for fourth place in the conference standings, but would lose all tiebreaker scenarios.
The Valiants dominated play almost all match long against Delaware Valley (3-11-3, 0-4-2 MAC Freedom), but the Aggies managed to slip their only shot of regulation into the net and they needed nothing else. Less than seven minutes into the match, Starr Sargent-Boone took a pass from Nikki Dunlap and found the net for the goal, putting the Valiants behind early.
Manhattanville had the next 12 shot attempts after Sargent-Boone's goal, finishing the first 90 minutes with a 13-1 advantage in shots.
Manhattanville continued to have chances but remained scoreless until the 83rd minute, when freshman
Lauren Vallarelli (Mamaroneck, N.Y./Mamaroneck) picked a great time for her first collegiate goal. Senior
Dani Sullivan (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) sent a through ball toward the Aggie net, and Vallarelli beat DVU keeper Brenna Coll to the ball and poked it into the vacant net to even the match and eventually send it to overtime.
The visitors could manage nothing more after that score, however, going the two 10-minute overtime periods without a shot. Junior
Dolores Diemicke (North Massapequa, N.Y./Plainedge) made one save for the Valiants, while Coll finished with five stops for DelVal.
The Valiants will return home for its final two matches of 2015 season next week, beginning on Wednesday night with a 6 p.m. contest against Eastern Connecticut State University at GoValiants.com Field.
