The 1. Hartford Hawks defeated 2. Springfield College Pride 6-0 to secure their second consecutive ECAC Women’s Soccer title.
While Springfield was able to keep the game close early on, the momentum quickly shifted in Hartford’s favor, as a cross from Lindsey Metcalfe found Christina Stone, who was able to head the ball over Springfield goalkeeper Taryn Ryan giving the Hawks a 1-0 lead. The goal was Stone’s 3rd of the weekend.
Ten minutes later, Stone assisted on the Hawks’ second goal of the game, as the grad student found Mayson Massaro wide open in front of the net, who slotted a shot in to double the Hawks lead to 2-0. Stone’s goal and assist secured her finish as the ECAC Tournament’s “Most Valuable Player” having scored 3 goals and 2 assists across her final two games for Hartford.
Continuing the season-long trend of the Hawks scoring multiple goals in quick succession, Imani Jenkins, the all-time goal scoring record holder for the Hawks, scored her final collegiate goal five minutes later, giving the Hawks a 3-0 lead entering half-time. Jenkins finishes her career with 80 goals.
The Hawks did not slow down after halftime, as the Hawks recorded 13 shots in the second half, including Kathleen Brush’s 13th goal of the season.
Hawks right back May Cervone would find her name on the scoresheet in her final game, assisting on Hartford’s 5th goal of the game, scored by Morgan Egan just 50 seconds after coming onto the field.
In one of the more emotional moments from the afternoon, the Hawks sent senior fullback Juliana Chiarella to the penalty spot with the chance to end her collegiate career with a goal scored in a Championship game. Chiarella sent the keeper the wrong way and scored the Hawks final goal of the afternoon, as the Hawks went on to win 6-0 and repeat as ECAC Champions.
With the win, Cervone, Jenkins, Chiarella, and Stone were all named to the All-ECAC Team, as the Hawks successfully defended their ECAC Title. The Hawks continued their impressive shutout streak, having finished the season with 6 consecutive shutouts. Goalkeepers Mira Mahmoud and Sejal Johnson’s have not conceded a goal since October 23rd, a 9-hour, 36 minute, and 29 second scoreless streak.
Hartford finishes the season with a 16-3-2 record, having won 12 consecutive games to end the season as ECAC Champions.
