The No. 2 ranked Emory University women's soccer team closed out its regular season with a 1-0 victory over No. 15 University of Rochester Saturday night in chilly Rochester, New York.
The win also represented a milestone achievement in the career of Head Coach Sue Patberg as she became the 39th head coach in NCAA women's soccer history to win 400 games. She is the 17th head coach in Division III history to reach the milestone and currently ranks sixth amongst active DIII coaches.
Following Saturday's result, the Eagles put an exclamation point on one of the best regular seasons in program history with an overall record of 16-1-1 – one win shy of tying the team record for most victories in a single season. With more work to be done, Emory will find out its postseason draw on Monday when the NCAA tournament field is released at 11:00 AM on NCAA.com.
Saturday's contest with Rochester proved to be another defensive battle inside the UAA as Emory collected its third 1-0 result in conference action as well as its fifth on the season. The shutout also marked the Eagles' 14th clean sheet of the season.
The first half saw limited opportunities for either team as both sides combined for four shots during the 45 minutes. Play was also halted for close to 45 minutes as a Rochester player was carted off with a knee injury sustained just under four minutes into the game.
Junior Madison Teng recorded one of the Eagles' best chances of the first half with a shot that nearly missed connecting with the top left corner in the 13th minute. Freshman Sophia Asiain had another chance for the Eagles, but her attempt was blocked in the 24th minute.
Emory finally cashed in with the game's lone goal in the 58th minute. Junior Kaitlyn Nimmer initially put a terrific shot on target but drilled the far post. The rebound fell perfectly to an uncovered Teng inside the box where she calmly tapped it in for her fifth tally of the year.
Nimmer nearly added to Emory's total with an opportunity two minutes later but her shot once again drew iron, drilling the crossbar. The Eagles were held to one shot over the final 30 minutes with a Melina Ramirez volley from close range in the 88th minute sailed over the crossbar.
The Emory defense excelled once more on Saturday as the backline allowed only two shots on goal in the win as senior Sophia Garcia was not tested for most of the night. Garcia made her the second of her two second half saves in the 83rd minute when a shot from Ava Schmidt forced Garcia to her knees at the left post to preserve the shutout.
More information regarding Emory's NCAA tournament draw will be made available Monday afternoon following the NCAA selection show at 11:00 AM.
