MEN'S SOCCER SEMIFINAL ROUND
No. 6 District of Columbia – 2, No. 2 Mercy – 1
Box Score
DOBBS FERRY, NY – All-ECC Second Team midfielder Ignacio Lopez broke a 1-1 tie with a successful penalty kick in the 60th minute to lift No. 6 District of Columbia to a 2-1 win over No. 2 Mercy in the ECC Men's Soccer Championship Semifinals at Mercy Field on Sunday afternoon. UDC (6-7-4, 3-4-1 ECC) will now advance to its second straight ECC Final and will face No. 5 Molloy next Sunday, November 17 at noon.
Despite being outshot 10-3 in the first half, the Firebirds made that third shot count as defender George Shaw headed in a perfect ball off a Lopez corner kick with just 15 ticks remaining before the halftime break.
Mercy (9-3-5, 5-0-3 ECC) equalized early in the second half as forward Mateo Bacigalupo put away his fifth of the year, assisted by midfielder Hugo Martin in the 52nd minute.
However, just under eight minutes later, Isaiah Daniel drew a foul in the box to set up a PK opportunity for the Firebirds, and Lopez buried the eventual match-winner in the 60th minute.
The match saw Mercy outshoot District of Columbia 23-6, but UDC rookie goalkeeper Giovanni Llamas came up big with 11 saves in the full 90:00, including a save on Mercy's final effort, a Jorgen Krohn-Pettersen shot in the 89th minute. Just minutes before, Benjamin van Buren attempted a shot on goal that was saved by the Firebirds' defensive core.
MEN'S SOCCER SEMIFINAL ROUND
No. 5 Molloy – 3, No. 1 Queens – 1
Box Score
FLUSHING, NY – Charlie Morgan had himself a night as the rookie assisted on the Lions' first and third goals and scored the second to lead No. 5 Molloy to a 3-1 upset victory over No. 1 Queens in the ECC Men's Soccer Championship Semifinals at Varsity Soccer Field on Sunday evening.
By way of No. 6 District of Columbia's 2-1 upset win over No. 2 Mercy earlier this afternoon, Molloy (8-7-4, 3-2-3 ECC) is the highest remaining seed and has earned the right to host the ECC Final at the RVC Athletic Complex next Sunday, November 17 at noon.
All-ECC Third Team defender Mathew Broadhead got the scoring started first for the Lions in the 30th minute as he headed a Morgan free kick into the upper 90.
Less than four minutes into the second half, Morgan juked a pair of Queens defenders and put away his first collegiate goal to give Molloy a 2-0 buffer in the 49th minute.
All-ECC First Team forward Harry Cooke cut the deficit to one in the 50th minute, heading home Queens forward Carlos Almeida's free kick, but Morgan found Molloy forward Steph Maurice off a corner, and Maurice netted the Lions' third goal of the game in the 70th minute.
ECC Rookie of the Year Callum Hunt made five saves in the full 90:00 to earn the win in net.