Although we are well and truly into conference tournament week, it was actually the Aussies wrapping up league play that brought the personal highlights this week. However, we do have one Aussie into a conference tournament final and a couple more into semi-finals as we wrap the penultimate week of the regular season.
It may have been a tough end to the season for Hawai’i, but Eliza Ammendolia shone brightly until the final day. Despite a loss to UC Irvine knocking the Rainbow Wahine out of Big West tournament contention, Ammendolia’s goal from 25 yards was simply scintillating as the Anteaters defence gave the Macarthur Rams product far too much space to shoot. Unfortunately, Ammendolia’s game and season came to an end early after copping the full brunt of a UC Irvine free kick to the head, but despite that ending, there was still good news to come.
Ammendolia picked up her second All-Big West First Team selection, adding to the First Team nomination she picked up in 2019 and the Second Team selection she earned in 2021 to go down in the history books as a program legend at Hawai’i.
Amy Sayer also enjoyed an outstanding week on a personal front for multiple reasons. Stanford continued their march towards the Pac-12 title, with the former Sydney FC star lashing home one of the Cardinal’s five goals in their 5-0 drubbing of Utah, taking her tally to four for the season.
However, it appears Sayer will miss the first two rounds of the upcoming NCAA Tournament. Not without good reason though, as the junior earned a call-up to the Matildas squad for the upcoming friendlies against Sweden and Thailand in November. The matches coincide with the opening weekend of NCAA Tournament play, but if everything goes to plan and Stanford roll through the first two rounds, hopefully Sayer can return for the Sweet Sixteen and beyond.
Midfield goals were definitely in vogue this week as Grace Norbury also found the back of the net as Alabama State rolled in the Magic City Classic against arch-rivals Alabama A&M. 1-0 up at halftime, Norbury doubled Alabama State’s advantage 18 minutes after the break, and although Alabama A&M pulled one back, a third Alabama State goal five minutes from time secured the points and the fourth seed in the upcoming SWAC Tournament.
Moving to conference tournaments, there is already one team featuring an Aussie into a championship game as Isabella Chidiac’s Denver faced Layla Lopez and Oral Roberts in the Summit League semi-finals. Just two weeks earlier, Denver had routed Oral Roberts 5-1, but a sterling defensive effort from the Golden Eagles saw the match finish 0-0 after extra time. Oral Roberts held their nerve in the shootout to advance with a 3-2 win and secure their spot in the championship game against Omaha this coming weekend. Unfortunately, neither Lopez nor Chidiac featured, but Lopez will have at least one more game in which to hopefully see some playing time.
Meanwhile, Claire Farrington and Butler faced Renée Pountney and Creighton in the Big East quarterfinals in another game that went to penalties. For the second consecutive game, these teams faced off and played to a 1-1 draw after doing the same in the regular season finale, but on this occasion a winner would be required. In a shootout that required sudden death to separate the teams, Creighton advanced 6-5 and will now face Georgetown in the semi-finals. Farrington played 78 minutes for the Bulldogs, whilst Pountney did not feature for the Bluejays on this occasion.
Although Eliza Ammendolia and Hawai’i may not have qualified for the Big West tournament, Aimee Medwin and Long Beach State slotted into fourth position to face #5 seed UC Santa Barbara in their tournament opener. Medwin played all 110 minutes for Beach after an 82nd minute equaliser for UC Santa Barbara sent the game to extra time. However, Lena Silano’s second goal of the contest just 104 seconds into extra time proved enough in an evenly matched game that saw the shot count finish 15-14 in UCSB’s favour. Beach will now face top seed Cal Poly at the Mustangs’ home patch in San Luis Obispo. These teams faced off at this very venue just two weeks ago and that game finished 1-1, so the seedings may very well be thrown out the window in this one.
Unfortunately, the news wasn’t quite so good in the Atlantic 10 as both Aussies exited in the first round. Greta Kraszula and VCU entered as the #3 seed, but fell 1-0 to Saint Joseph’s in a game that saw the Rams finish with 17 shots to the Hawks’ 9, but with only three on target. Moreover, the loss also skewered VCU’s RPI, all but eliminating the Rams from any chance of securing an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament. Kraszula played 82 minutes in the season-ending defeat, finishing with a pair of shots.
Hannah Peric and Massachusetts were playing with house money as the #7 seed on the road at #2 seed Dayton, but gave the Flyers plenty to handle in their quarter-final. However, a fifth minute goal for Dayton set the home side on their way, and although the stats were fairly even, the Flyers slotted home two of their six shots on target to secure a 2-0 victory. Unfortunately, Peric did not feature for UMass in the Minutewomen’s final game of the season.
Complete Results
Alabama State (Madison Chambers, Grace Norbury)
This week: defeated Alabama A&M 3-1
Grace Norbury started for Alabama State in their win over Alabama A&M, finishing with a goal in her 71 minutes on the pitch. Madison Chambers came off the bench for the Hornets, playing 23 minutes.
Butler (Claire Farrington)
This week: drew 1-1 with Creighton; lost to Creighton 6-5 on penalties (1-1 AET) (Big East Tournament Quarter-Final)
Claire Farrington started both games for Butler against Creighton this week, playing 90 minutes in the regular season finale and 78 minutes in the tournament loss.
Coastal Carolina (Asha McClurg)
This week: defeated Louisiana-Monroe 1-0
Asha McClurg did not feature for Coastal Carolina in their win over Louisiana-Monroe.
Creighton (Renée Pountney)
This week: drew 1-1 with Butler; defeated Butler 6-5 on penalties (1-1 AET) (Big East Tournament Quarter-Final)
Renée Pountney came off the bench to play 7 minutes in Creighton’s regular season finale against Butler, but did not feature in their tournament win over the same opponents.
Denver (Isabella Chidiac)
This week: lost Oral Roberts 3-2 on penalties (0-0 AET) (Summit League Tournament Semi-Final)
Isabella Chidiac did not feature in Denver’s semi-final loss to Oral Roberts.
DePaul (Katie Godden)
This week: match v St. John’s cancelled.
Hawai’i (Eliza Ammendolia)
This week: lost 4-1 to UC Irvine
Eliza Ammendolia started for Hawai’i in their loss to UC Irvine, scoring a goal in her 57 minutes on the pitch before being forced off due to a head knock.
Kent State (Lua Suero)
This week: lost 2-0 to Buffalo
Lua Suero started for Kent State in their loss to Buffalo, registering one shot in 32 minutes. Unfortunately, other results conspired against Kent State, knocking them out of MAC Tournament contention on the final day.
La Salle (Courtney Butlion)
This week: No games.
Long Beach State (Aimee Medwin)
This week: lost 1-0 to UC Davis; defeated UC Santa Barbara 2-1 after extra time (Big West Tournament Quarter-Final)
Aimee Medwin played all 200 minutes of the weekend, registering a single shot against UC Davis and two more in the overtime victory over UC Santa Barbara.
Long Island (Isabella Stein)
This week: lost 1-0 to St. Francis Brooklyn
Isabella Stein came off the bench to play 18 minutes in Long Island’s loss to St. Francis Brooklyn.
Louisiana (Emma Bates)
This week: lost 1-0 to Southern Miss
Emma Bates did not feature in Louisiana’s loss to Southern Miss.
Louisiana Tech (Caitlin Le Roux)
This week: lost 2-1 to North Texas
Caitlin Le Roux did not feature in Louisiana Tech’s loss to North Texas.
Massachusetts (Hannah Peric)
This week: lost 2-0 to Dayton (Atlantic 10 Tournament Quarter-Final)
Hannah Peric did not feature in Massachusetts’ loss to Dayton.
Oral Roberts (Layla Lopez)
This week: defeated North Dakota State 2-1 (OT) (Summit League Tournament Quarter-Final), defeated Denver 3-2 on penalties (0-0 AET) (Summit League Tournament Semi-Final)
Layla Lopez did not feature for Oral Roberts in either game this week.
Oregon (Lara Kirkby, Isabel Rolley)
This week: lost 5-1 to Arizona State; lost 4-1 to Arizona
Isabel Rolley started for Oregon in their loss to Arizona State, playing 80 minutes. The defender then came off the bench against Arizona, registering a shot in 48 minutes of action. Lara Kirkby did not feature on either occasion.
Rider (Eloise Jones)
This week: lost to Canisius 4-2 on penalties (1-1 AET) (MAAC Tournament Quarter-Final)
Eloise Jones did not feature in Rider’s tournament loss to Canisius.
Sam Houston State (Cameron Barreiro)
This week: lost 6-0 to Cal Baptist; lost 6-0 to Grand Canyon
Cameron Barreiro did not feature for Sam Houston state on either occasion this week.
San Francisco (Ashley Jordan)
This week: drew 0-0 with San Diego
Ashley Jordan did not feature in San Francisco’s draw with San Diego.
Santa Clara (Holly Furphy)
This week: drew 0-0 with BYU
Holly Furphy did not feature in Santa Clara’s draw with BYU as the freshman continues to recover from a season-ending leg injury.
Seton Hall (Grace Mitchell, Sarah Mitchell)
This week: lost 4-0 to Connecticut
Grace and Sarah Mitchell both came off the bench for Seton Hall against Connecticut, playing five and 25 minutes respectively.
Siena (Iona Snape)
This week: No games.
Southern Illinois (Chantelle Symes)
This week: lost 2-1 to Murray State (Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Second Round)
Chantelle Symes did not feature in Southern Illinois’ loss to Murray State.
St. Francis Brooklyn (Chloe Walker)
This week: defeated Long Island 1-0
Chloe Walker did not feature in St. Francis Brooklyn’s win over Long Island.
Stanford (Amy Sayer)
This week: defeated Utah 5-0; defeated Colorado 2-0
Amy Sayer came off the bench in both games this week, scoring with one of her 3 shots in 37 minutes against Utah and playing 18 minutes in the win over Colorado.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Molly Arens)
This week: lost 2-1 to Houston Christian
Molly Arens did not feature in Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s loss to Houston Christian as she continues her recovery from a season-ending injury.
UAB (Abbey Burns)
This week: drew 0-0 with Rice
Abbey Burns came off the bench to play 45 minutes in UAB’s draw with Rice.
UMBC (Isobel Davy, Annaliese Grove)
This week: lost 5-0 to Binghamton
Annaliese Grove started and played 66 minutes in UMBC’s loss to Binghamton, whilst Isobel Davy did not feature.
UNC Asheville (Jasmine Barry)
This week: No games.
USC (Talia Grossman)
This week: defeated Washington 2-1; defeated Washington State 3-2
Talia Grossman did not feature for USC in either game this week.
UTRGV (Dani Rutstein, Caitlin Webster)
This week: defeated Abilene Christian 1-0; lost 2-0 to Tarleton State
Neither Caitlin Webster nor Dani Rutstein featured for UTRGV in either game this week.
VCU (Greta Kraszula)
This week: lost 1-0 to Saint Joseph’s (Atlantic 10 Tournament Quarter-Final)
Greta Kraszula started for VCU in their loss to Saint Joseph’s, registering two shots in her 82 minutes on the pitch.
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