ROCHESTER, NY – After a decisive triumph in the First Round on Tuesday, the Hartwick women's soccer team is looking to head back to their third Empire 8 Championship game in four seasons with a win on Thursday. The fourth-seeded Hawks (7-5-4, 4-2-2 E8) will take on top seed Nazareth (8-6-3, 7-1-0 E8) in the Empire 8 Semifinals on Thursday afternoon, with kickoff set for 2 p.m. from Nazareth's Golden Flyer Stadium.
The Hawks earned their spot in the Semifinals thanks to a dynamic four-goal performance on Elmore Field in the First Round against Utica, led most prominently by Gianna Cacciola (Wading River, NY/Shoreham Wading River). Cacciola had three goals and an assist, as 'Wick scored three times in just over 20 minutes in the second half to take a 4-1 lead over the Pioneers. Grace Byrne (Lynbrook, NY/Sacred Heart Academy) and Julia Collado (Whitehouse Station, NJ/Hunterdon) were also impressive, as the former had a goal and an assist while the latter had just an assist but figured prominently into Hartwick's final two goals as well.
Nazareth has been led by a trio of upperclassmen forwards up front. Kristen Prohaska and Sydney Moss are tied with each other at fifth in the Empire 8 in goals per game with 0.5, and both rank in the top ten in shots as well. Caleigh Cahoon has also figured prominently in the Golden Flyer offense, ranking seventh in the conference with 2.50 shots per game. Defensively, Lauren Begy, Grace Palczewski, Mallory Ott, and Shayla Scully have done much of the work for the conference's top back line, as Nazareth allowed just 0.38 goals per Empire 8 game this season. Annika Monfort has done the goalkeeping for the Golden Flyers, allowing .401 goals per game on a conference-best .885 save percentage.
Nazareth took the regular season meeting between the two teams by a 1-0 score. That match was also played in Golden Flyer Stadium. The lone goal was scored in the 56th minute, as Shayla Scully's ball into the box was deflected away and controlled by Sydney Moss, who slid it under Sara Staup (Woodinville, WA/Woodinville) and into the net.
These two sides have met just once in postseason history, also in the Empire 8 Semifinals. That game was played on Elmore Field in 2019, and also had a 1-0 result, but in favor of Hartwick thanks to Zoe Capanna's 55th minute tally.
Tickets for Thursday's game will cost $6 for the general public, $4 for students with ID, senior citizens (65+), and youth (12-17). Children 12 and under will be admitted for free. The live stream and live statistics can be found by clicking here.
The winner of Thursday's game advances to the Empire 8 Championship, which will be played on Saturday on the campus of the highest remaining seed. #3 St. John Fisher takes on #2 Alfred in the other Semifinals matchup, Thursday at 6 p.m.
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