BOSTON, Mass. – Senior defender Liz Donovan (Nashua, N.H.) scored with 5:44 left in overtime to lift the Simmons College women's soccer team to a 2-1 win over the visiting Albertus Magnus College this evening in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference match at Daly Field in Brighton, Mass. The victory extends the Sharks' unbeaten streak to six straight matches, the longest such string since an eight-game stretch from October 5-26, 2011 and boosts the home team's record to 6-3-2 on the season and 4-2-1 in GNAC play, while the Falcons drop to 3-5-1 overall and 2-4-1 in conference action.
After earning a corner kick midway through the first overtime period, junior forward Mikayla Elliott (Lowell, Mass.) sent a short cross to Donovan, who rocketed a shot from close to 30 yards out past the outstretched arms of the Albertus goalkeeper at 94:16 to give Simmons the win. The marker was the third goal of the season and first career game-winner for Donovan.
Despite the Sharks owning a 10-2 shot advantage in the opening half, the teams went into the intermission with a scoreless deadlock.
The teams played to a 1-1 tie after 90 minutes of action, with each scoring in the second half of play to send Simmons into extra time for the third time this season. The Sharks opened the scoring in the 61st minute, with Elliott collecting the ball at the top of the 18-yard box and curling in a shot to the far post, to give the home team a 1-0 lead. Elliott is currently leading the team with 17 points on the season, including six goals and five assists.
The Falcons were able to even the score at 1-1 with a little less than 15 minutes remaining, when junior midfielder Kerrigan Loughman (Trumbull, Conn.) collected a loose ball and bent in a long range shot to the far post for her third tally of the year at the 76:42 mark of the second stanza. Albertus had the best chance before the end of regulation, with a flurry of shots in the six-yard box that were blocked by the Simmons backfield.
Senior goalkeeper Casey Halle (Watertown, Mass.) recorded three saves in the outing to earn the victory, while Lexie Fenn (Oakville, Conn.) turned away 19 shots, one shy of her career-best.
Simmons dominated offensive chances in the match outshooting the Falcons 32-7, including 20-5 in the second half, and maintained a 7-3 edge in corner kicks.
The Sharks are back in action on Friday October 6 when they travel to Northfield, Vt. to take on conference opponent Norwich University at 7:00 pm, while Albertus travels to Weston, Mass. to take on GNAC foe, Regis (Mass.) on Saturday, October 7 for a noon start.