Box Score

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (September 16, 2009) – As the skies darkened and the temperature dropped on Wednesday at Gordon Field, it looked as though the Vassar College and Stevens Institute of Technology women's soccer teams were headed towards an overtime period with the score knotted at zero. However, junior Allison McManis made the most of every second left on the clock, sending in the winning goal with four seconds remaining as the Brewers picked up a 1-0 non-conference win over the Ducks.

The Brewers get a much-needed win following two consecutive losses to improve their record to 3-2. Vassar will play at New York University on Friday at 12:00 p.m. The Ducks remain winless at 0-7 and have no easy opponent ahead of them, travelling to No. 11 Ithaca College on Saturday.

Following 89 minutes and 56 seconds of scoreless play, regulation time had all but wound down. McManis was not yet finished however, gathering a ball in the midfield and unleashing a shot from a little over 20 yards out. The ball deflected slightly off a Duck defender, altering its path just enough to create trouble for Stevens senior keeper Teegan Kelly as the ball sailed over her head into the back of the net for McManis' third goal of the season.

Neither team was able to generate much offense in the first half as Vassar outshot the Ducks 6-5 with a 3-2 shots on goal advantage. The Brewers controlled the midfield with crisp ball movement, and McManis, junior Carolyn Demougeot and freshman Keiko Kurita showed impressive ability to jumpstart their forwards with great feeds from the midfield. The Vassar forwards however were unable to give Kelly too much of a challenge as the Ducks defenders prevented them from unleashing dangerous shots.

One of the Brewers' best opportunities in the first half came in the 18th minute as Kurita laid a pass off to senior Anna Robinson, who beat her defender and fired a great shot at the goal, over Kelly's head. However, Robinson's offering glanced off the crossbar leaving the game scoreless.

The Ducks got a great look of their own in the 37th minute as three Stevens forwards converged on a loose ball in front of the net. Freshman goalie Ali Higgins dove on a shot from junior Katria Mislio but was unable to smother the ball. The danger remained after a failed Vassar clear but Higgins persisted and finally corralled the ball.

The Brewers had some good offensive opportunities early in the second half, as Robinson consistently created difficulties for the Stevens back line. Just over two minutes into the half, junior Rachel Shea threaded a through ball to Robinson, who beat her defender to fire a point blank shot on goal, but Kelly came out to make a difficult block on the shot. Ten minutes later, another pinpoint through ball – this time from Demougeot – sent the speedy Robinson racing past her defender, but her shot sailed just wide of the goal.

The game saw strong goal-tending on both sides. Kelly recorded nine saves in the loss, falling to 0-2. For Vassar, Higgins had three saves, and freshman goalie Lexi Hutton made five saves in the second half to earn the win and improve to 2-0.

The Brewers outshot Stevens 19-13, with Robinson recording six shots, four on goal, and McManis adding four shots, three on goal. Mislio and senior Katelyn Stewart had strong efforts on the day, keeping the Vassar defenders busy with three shots, two on goal apiece.