For Immediate Release
November 20, 2011
Courtesy of the Saint Rose Athletics Communications Staff
Albany, N.Y. – The College of Saint Rose punched its fourth straight ticket to the NCAA Tournament National Semifinals with a dominating 1-0 victory against second-ranked California, PA (20-1-2) this afternoon. The 10th-ranked Golden Knights displayed their offensive firepower as the nation's top-scoring club, while holding the second highest scoring team in check in a national quarterfinal encounter at Sullivan Field at the Plumeri Sports Complex.
Saint Rose generated a 25-4 advantage in shots, including a 9-1 differential in on-target threats, and engineered seven corner kicks, while yielding only one.
Senior forward Gianna D'Errico struck with the game's lone goal with 47:59 elapsed, just two minutes after her twin sister and senior midfielder Nicola D'Errico rattled the post.
Sophomore forward Carmelina Puopolo developed the play from the right flank where she slipped a pass to senior midfielder Kimberly Morton who found D'Errico in the area. D'Errico subsequently slotted her shot into the right corner from 10-yards out.
Saint Rose continued to pressure the rest of the way and Nicola D'Errico was victimized by the frame again when she nailed the crossbar with 79:08 gone by.
The Golden Knights wound up testing California, Pa. senior keeperPaula Jackson four times in the first half and five more in the second to force her into eight saves in order to keep the Vulcans within striking distance. Sophomore Jessica Gerski, meanwhile, was called upon to make only one save for Saint Rose.
The 10th ranked Golden Knights (22-1-1) will now meet Armstrong Atlantic State (18-2-3) in a national semifinal game on Thursday, December 1 in Pensacola, Florida. The Pirates moved on with a 2-1 victory versus Tampa in another quarterfinal affair this afternoon.
Saint Rose has now outscored its last 10 opponents by a 33-3 margin since its lone defeat this season, a 3-0 setback at Merrimack back on October 15. The Golden Knights have since defeated the Warriors 5-1 in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship game and 5-0 in last week's NCAA Tournament second-round match.
Furthermore, they have outscored their opponents by a 19-2 differential throughout six postseason contests, and by an 86-9 margin when displacing their lone loss this autumn.
