RIVERDALE, NY – The Manhattan Jaspers Women's Soccer team (7-5-5, 6-4-1 MAAC) emerged victorious in its conference contest Saturday afternoon against the Warriors from Merrimack College (4-11-2, 3-8 MAAC) by a final score of 4-0 at Gaelic Park.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Two early shots in the first seven minutes from the Warriors forced a pair of timely saves from Molly Brunk.
- After Merrimack controlled the shot battle for much of the first half hour, Arancha Antunes broke the ice following a free kick from Talia Omer.
- Scarlett Smith applied more pressure late in the half, but the Jaspers held onto their 1-0 lead going into the locker room.
- Just ten seconds into the second set of 45 starting, Antunes led a pass to Kaylee Stowell who fired the ball home past the Warrior goalkeeper to double Manhattan's lead.
- Off a corner four minutes later, Stowell's shot clanked off the crossbar, with Olivia McMaster there to collect the ricochet for a third Jasper goal.
- Shortly after Brunk netted her seventh save of the afternoon, Josslyn Weissman also familiarized herself with the crossbar, but her shot bounced down and in, extending the Green and White's advantage out to 4-0.
- Despite a shot from the Warriors in the final five minutes, it wasn't enough to dodge another Brunk shutout, the 19th of her career.
STATS AND NOTES
- Manhattan out-shot the Warriors both overall and on-goal, by 15-11 and 8-7 margins, respectively
- Junior midfielder Arancha Antunes registered three points on the afternoon, a new career-high.
- Junior goalkeeper Molly Brunk logged seven saves, her highest total since 9/13 against Sacred Heart.
- The Jaspers edged out the Warriors in corner opportunities, with five opposed to the visitors' three.
- Sophomore defender Lily Bandel and Junior Talia Omer both logged a full 90 minutes on the pitch.
QUOTES FROM THE JASPERS:
- Head Coach Brendan Lawler: "Great result and great way for our seniors to finish their career on Gaelic Park. They got us the result we needed to keep this playoff push alive going into the final game of the season!"
NEXT UP:
The Green and White will return to action this Wednesday, October 29 for their regular season finale against the Bobcats from Quinnipiac. The contest can be viewed on ESPN+ with opening kick scheduled for 2:30 p.m. from Quinnipiac Soccer and Lacrosse Stadium.
Follow Manhattan Women's Soccer on Instagram and X (@JaspersWSOC).
