Rowan University women’s soccer continued their dominance in Glassboro, New Jersey last Saturday and are now 7-1 at home after defeating Kean University 1-0 on the Profs’ senior day
This Senior Day was extra special for the Profs, as last year’s seniors never got a chance to celebrate due to the season being canceled because of COVID-19. Since they were granted an extra year of eligibility, both this year’s and last year’s seniors were able to be honored.
Bristol Pizzuto, Kelsey Holt, Kelsi Stangl, Kalin Priest, Jess Logan, Arianna Durling, Jamie Ervin, Aidan Sheehan and Beth Sansone were the seniors honored before the game.
Head Coach Scott Leacott shared his thoughts on both sets of seniors.
“You have four of the girls who this is their fifth year, so they didn’t have a season last year. They dedicate themselves to come back for a fifth year just to play. They all basically graduated so for them it meant a ton, and for us it means everything. It means big-time things for everybody, just for the fact that they’re well-liked,” Coach Leacott said. “And for the other kids that are seniors [this year] they have the option to come back next year, but we couldn’t be prouder of their dedication and commitment to the program. They basically run the show.”
Although it was senior day, the lone source of offense in the game came via a freshman.
For much of the first half, both the Profs and Cougars weren’t able to get many shots off. For the Profs, their defense, led by seniors Kelsi Stangl, Kalin Priest, and Arianna Durling, were able to limit Kean to just one shot the entire first half.
With nine minutes remaining in the half, freshman midfielder Sarah Bergan was able to locate a ball crossed in from Stangl and connect with the back of the net for her second goal of the season.
“We’ve been working on finishing crosses a lot, so in my head, I knew it was a perfect ball and I just had to put it in,” Bergan said.
Bergan’s goal made the score 1-0 heading into halftime and was the difference in the game. The Profs’ defense held strong throughout the rest of the match and didn’t allow the Cougars to get one shot off in the second half.
For fifth-year senior and captain Aidan Sheehan, who is a vital player for the Profs, leading the team with seven goals this season, getting the win on Senior Day meant a lot to her.
“Oh it was awesome, I mean that’s everything we could’ve asked for,” Sheehan said. “Obviously our senior season was canceled last year so to come out again and have senior day today, that was our final goal to get the dub today.”
The Profs are now 11-3 on the season and 6-1 in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play.
As the regular season is coming to a close, Rowan has two more NJAC games left that will be key going into the NJAC playoffs. The Profs will face The University of Maine Fort-Kent on Monday in Glassboro, followed by Montclair State University away on Saturday.
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