Worcester, Mass. - November 2, 2021 - The Springfield College women's soccer program defeated Clark University, 1-0 , in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Women's Soccer Championship Tournament Quarterfinal on Tuesday night at Granger Field. 

The Pride, who entered the quarterfinal matchup as the No. 6 seed, will now advance to the NEWMAC Semifinal on Thursday, while Clark closes its 2021 season at 11-7 overall. Springfield edged Clark in shots, 10-9, while the Cougars notched six corners on the evening. 

Amelia Harper (Taylorsville, Utah) claimed the victory with a strong performance as the junior tallied five saves. 

Morgan Small recorded four saves in the setback.

The hosts came out aggressive in the first half as Siobhan Lounsbury rifled a pair of shots on frame for the Cougars in the early going, howver Harper cleared away both to notch the first two saves of the game. At 18:05, Kaleigh Dale (Mansfield, Conn.) took a foul in the box and was awarded a penalty kick, which the senior midfielder drilled for the Pride to give the vistors' a 1-0 lead. With 35:42 on the clock, Lounsbury again attempted to even the game for the Cougars with a header try, yet Harper was there against to palm the chance. The Pride looked to double their lead in the 44th-minute, but an offside call kept the score to 1-0 entering the break. 

In the second half, Springfield continued to look for a chance to extend their advantage as Marissa Martino (Melville, N.Y.) put through a chance from the right the corner of the box that just narrowly missed wide keeping it a one goal game in the 52nd-minute. In the 60th-minute, Lounsbury broke away from the Springfield backline and had a one-on-one with Harper for the score, however Harper took a slide that redirect the shot wide, then at 61:27, Lounsbury returned from the right side and punched a shot at the opposite post that Harper dove at and cleared out for a pair of tremendous plays. The Cougars continued to seek chances late into the half with Emma Tziachris taking shot on goal that Harper rose up for and batted up and away preserving the 1-0 lead for the Pride with 77:34 on the clock. In the 87th-minute, Cougars setup their offense, which eventually worked to Lounsbury in the box for the attempt, but Maddy Bonavita (Wilbraham, Mass.) sped in for the timly block on the Cougars' closest chance of the half. In the final seconds, the Cougars used a corner kick to get one more desperation chance off, which again resulted in Springfield walling up the chance and claiming the quarterfinal shutout victory.

No. 6 Springfield will now host No. 7 Wheaton College on Thursday, November 4 at 7 pm. 

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