Early Goal Advances Top-Seeded Hoyas to Sweet Sixteen on Sunday (original) (raw)

WASHINGTON – The top-seeded Georgetown women's soccer team scored the game-winning goal early on in the first half on Friday against Washington State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Washington, D.C. The Hoyas defeated the Cougars 1-0 and advanced to the third round on Sunday to face fourth-seeded Duke at Shaw Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. With the win, the Blue & Gray improve to 19-0-3 overall, while Washington State finishes the season 13-6-1.

Live stats and a video stream for Sunday's game will be available on GUHoyas.com.

The Hoyas took the lead in the 10th minute when sophomore Grace Nguyen (Lilburn, Ga. / Parkview) took a corner kick from the right side, which junior Meaghan Nally (Herndon, Va. / South Lakes) converted into a goal. Nally connected with Nguyen's pass and headed the ball into the back of the net to put GU up 1-0. The goal marked Nally's third this season and Nguyen recorded her seventh assist.

The Georgetown defense denied every opportunity that the Cougars found to try and score. Sophomore Kelly Ann Livingstone (Glen Ridge, N.J. / Glen Ridge) anchored a defense that allowed just four shots in the first half and one in the second. Washington State created many scenarios inside the box to try and bury a shot past senior goalkeeper Arielle Schechtman (Del Mar, Calif. / La Jolla Country Day / UCLA), but the Hoya back line cleared the box almost every time.

The Blue & Gray had a few more opportunities to score, but could not generate any more goals. In the 36th minute, graduate student Kyra Carusa (San Diego, Calif. / Del Norte / Stanford) fired a shot from the six-yard box, but the ball deflected off WSU goalkeeper Rachel Thompson's fingers and just missed the net. In the 62nd minute, senior Amanda Carolan (Bayview, N.Y. / Central Regional) had a big opportunity to put the Hoyas up 2-0 while Thompson was on the ground recovering from a previous shot, but another Cougar filled in for Thompson and blocked Carolan's shot. With 11 minutes left to play, Carusa fired a shot from the left side of the box towards Thompson, but hit the crossbar, just missing inside of the net.

Georgetown outshot Washington State 13-5, but the Cougars had a 10-7 advantage on corner kicks. Thompson recorded five saves at net while Schechtman, who registered her 14th shutout of the season, tallied four saves. Additionally, this was Georgetown's first program win over a Pac-12 Conference school.

The Hoyas will host fourth-seeded Duke on Sunday at Shaw Field for an 11 a.m. kickoff. Live stats and a video stream, with Monika Moore calling the action, will be available on GUHoyas.com. After Sunday's game, the Georgetown men's soccer team will play at Shaw Field at 2 p.m. to take on West Virginia in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Tickets for both games are available on WeAreGeorgetown.com.