#4 Bulldogs Upset #1 Saint Rose 3-1 in NE-10 Semifinals

Northeast-10 Women's Soccer Semifinals    #4 Bryant at #1 Saint Rose

ALBANY, N.Y. - The fourth-seed Bryant Women's Soccer team upset top-ranked Saint Rose 3-1 in the Northeast-10 Semifinals, at sunny Albany Academy Friday afternoon.

With the victory, Bryant (15-6-1) advances to Sunday's Northeast-10 Championship where they will play No. 2 seed Franklin Pierce which defeated Saint Anselm, 2-1 in overtime.   

Amy Orzechowski (Milford, Conn.) scored her second of the game and fourth of the season to put the Bulldogs ahead 2-1 in the 50th minute. Orzechowski lobbed a shot over Golden Knights netminder Lauren Steinberg to give the Bulldogs the lead. Diane Pascale (Plymouth, Mass.) picked up the assist on the go-ahead goal.

Stephanie Zalewski (Parsippany, N.J) gave Bryant the 3-1 lead as she fired it low and to the right of Steinberg off a great pair of passes. Daisy Martinez (Eliot, ME) picked up the assist, while Danielle Malta (Bethel, Conn.) ignited the play with a perfect pass to Martinez. The goal was Zalewski's third of the year.

Bryant, ranked third in the New England region, got on the board first as Orzechowski fired a shot from just outside the box in the 13th minute. The ball came right to Orzechowski off a deflection in front, and she kicked it to left corner of the net past Steinberg.

Saint Rose, ranked fifth in the nation, tied it at one in the 30th minute as Ashley McGuire scored on a breakaway, beating Katie Mitchell (Deer Park, N.Y.) to her right.

Bryant controlled the game and the possession in the first ten minutes. Casey Grange (Methuen, Mass.) hit the right post on a shot that beat Steinberg. Diane Pascale (Plymouth, Mass.) set Grange up on the play.

The Bulldogs continued on the attack, as a Megan Reising (Diamond Point, N.Y.) header sailed just wide of the net in the 23rd minute.

The Bulldogs fired six shots on net, to Saint Rose's five, as Mitchell made four saves to earn the win.

The loss is the Golden Knights second of the year. They are 15-2-1 on the season.