NEW YORK – The First Round of the BIG EAST Women’s Soccer Championship, presented by Jeep, kicked off on Tuesday with higher seeds winning in both contests. No. 3 seed Georgetown, the predetermined host of the semifinals and finals, topped sixth-seeded Butler, 4-0, in Washington, D.C., before fourth-seeded St. John’s snuck by fifth-seeded Providence, 1-0, in Queens, N.Y.
The No. 4 seed Red Storm advance to face top-seeded Marquette in Friday’s first semifinal, set for 11:30 a.m. at Georgetown’s Shaw Field. The Hoyas will face second-seeded DePaul in the second semi, slated for 2 p.m. Both semifinal matches will stream live on the BIG EAST Digital Network.
No. 3 Georgetown 4, No. 6 Butler 0
Seventh-ranked Georgetown showed why they’ve been tabbed as one of the nation’s top-10 teams over the last seven weeks following a convincing win over Butler in Tuesday’s first round. Taking advantage of a shorthanded Bulldog squad which was without All-BIG EAST First Team selection Serina Kashimoto due to injury, Georgetown cruised to a 4-0 win, outshooting Butler 20-3 and earning the advantage in corner kicks, 14-2. Just one shot made it to GU keeper Arielle Schechtman, who earned her 10
th shutout of the season. Hannah Luedtke made a season-high 10 saves for Butler while Halle Stelbasky notched a pair of shots. Recently crowned BIG EAST Freshman of the Year Amanda Carolan scored twice for Georgetown while Carson Nizialek and Crystal Thomas scored insurance goals both off feeds from Caitlin Farrell.
Georgetown will look to avenge its only loss of the BIG EAST season when it faces second-seeded DePaul on Friday in the BIG EAST Semifinals. The Blue Demons dealt the Hoyas a 4-1 setback on Oct. 23 in Washington, D.C. The Hoyas advance to the semis for the sixth consecutive year. Georgetown and DePaul have met in the postseason in three of the last four seasons with the Blue Demons taking the last two meetings, including the 2014 title game.
Box Score
No. 4 St. John’s 1, No. 5 Providence 0
Playing against each other for the second time in four days, it was the Red Storm once again who came away with the win. In a battle between a pair of All-BIG EAST goalkeepers, it was three-time BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year Diana Poulin who claimed her 12
th shutout of the season, making three saves to keep the Friars off the board. PC keeper Kristyn Shea was flawless until the 84
th minute when Morgan Tinari notched her second goal of the season, tapping in a rebound off a Shea save. Shea would finish with six saves. The Red Storm outshot Providence 13-11 but the Friars held the advantage in corner kicks, 11-4.
St. John’s returns to the BIG EAST Championship Semifinals for the fourth-straight season where the Red Storm will face top-seeded Marquette. The Golden Eagles beat St. John’s earlier this season, 2-0, in Milwaukee.
Box Score