Lopez Scores
Twice to Lift LIU Past Fordham, 2-1; |
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11/12/04-- The Rams jumped out to the early lead on Leah Jerome's fifth goal of the season. Beth Purcell sent a free kick from more than 40 yards out into the LIU box where a missed clearance was picked up by Jerome. The Ram sophomore was able to loft the ball into the upper right corner of the net from three yards out. The Blackbirds equalized after 29 minutes. Junior midfielder Meghann McCormick (Liverpool, N.Y.) made a nice run through the midfield before passing down the right side to a speedy Lopez. With Fordham keeper Alessandra Cacciotti charging out, the Highland Mills, N.Y. native was able to chip the ball up and over for her fifth goal of the season. Lopez put the Blackbirds ahead
to stay in the 34th minute as she cleaned up a The second half saw more even back-and-forth play from the two squads. LIU had its best opportunity to go up by two, but sophomore Allison Andreano’s sliding effort to latch onto a Selima Berisha cross hitthe post and deflected out. For the Rams, Leah Jerome was denied by sophomore Stephanie Kansky’s diving stop. The rebound deflected to Beth Purcell who’s shot was cleared off the line by a Blackbird defender in the 71st minute. Kansky registered six saves while the defense recorded the one lone team stop. In an impressive display, both teams played hard until the final whistle despite field conditions that had degenerated into a muddy mess. |
Long
Island- behind the foot of senior Nichole Lopez -rallied from
a goal down to
defeat Fordham, 2-1, in the semifinals of the
ECAC
tournament on Friday night at Baker Field. The Blackbirds,
seeded second in the two-day event, will face host and top
seed Columbia in the final on Saturday at 7 p.m.