Western New England Falls to Gordon in Regular Season Finale, 2-1

Golden Bears will open CCC Tournament at home on Saturday

WENHAM, Mass. (October 24, 2017) – The Western New England University women's soccer team fell to Gordon College, 2-1, in the regular season finale for both teams on Tuesday afternoon in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at the Quad. 

Depending on the outcome of Tuesday night's Roger Williams/Eastern Nazarene matchup, Western New England (9-7-2, 7-2 CCC) will enter the CCC Tournament as either the No. 2 or No. 3 seed, and will host a quarterfinal round contest on Saturday. Gordon (9-4-2, 6-2-1), which has now won five consecutive games, will also be at home in the first round as the No. 4 seed.

Top Performers
• Western New England sophomore midfielder Jennifer Merritt (Burlington, Conn.) scored her first career goal to tie the score late in the first half.

• Sophomore forward Lexi Potter (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) led the way for the Fighting Scots, as she recorded a goal and an assist.
• Sophomore midfielder Ashton Barkey (Parker, Colo.) scored the game-winner for Gordon in the 76^th minute.

Match Review
• Western New England put pressure on Gordon early, as the Golden Bears earned two corner kicks and put one shot on goal over the first 3:42 of the contest.  
• The Fighting Scots struck first, however, as Potter received a pass from junior Asha Steele (Bedford, N.H.) before finding the back of the net at the 31:18 mark.
• Western New England equalized just 6:40 later, when Merritt collected a rebound and fired a line drive shot over Gordon sophomore goalkeeper Kali Denty (Marshfield, Mass.).
• The score remained tied heading into halftime with the Fighting Scots holding an 8-6 shot advantage.
• Barkey snapped the 1-1 deadlock at the 75:05 mark, when she buried a shot into the left side of the goal with the help of an assist from Potter, who sent in a pass from the right side.
• Western New England had opportunities to pull even in the late stages of the game, including a shot by freshman Danielle Skates (Berlin, Conn.) in the final minute, but Denty made several stops to preserve the win for the Fighting Scots.

Notes
• Gordon outshot Western New England 15-13, but the Golden Bears held a 5-4 edge in corner kicks.
• Four-time CCC Defensive Player of the Week Alex Lemekha (Stamford, Conn.) made six saves for Western New England.
• Freshman Morgan Smith (Manchester, Conn.) fired a team-high five shots.