Sarah Bray '11 scored three goals and added three assists to lead nationally ranked No. 1 and undefeated Hamilton College to a 14-9 win against No. 9 Colby College in a 2010 NCAA Division III championship regional final at Hamilton's Steuben Field on May 16.
Hamilton (20-0 overall) advanced to the NCAA championship semifinals for the third straight year. The Continentals won the national title in 2008 and lost to Franklin & Marshall College in the 2009 semis. Hamilton will get a chance to avenge that 2009 loss as the teams will meet again at Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, Pa., at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 22. Franklin & Marshall defeated the University of Mary Washington, 16-3, in a regional final played at F&M on Sunday.
The Continentals extended their home win streak to 38 games. Hamilton’s six seniors, Matilda Andersson ’10, Kayla Bettenhauser ’10, Kate Fowler ’10, Audrey Nebergall ’10, Liz Rave ’10 and Hilary Saverin ’10, never lost a home game in their four years at Hamilton.
Hamilton is now 4-0 all-time against Colby. The Mules (15-5) were making their first appearance in a regional final in their fourth trip to the NCAA championships.
Hamilton is now 4-0 all-time against Colby. The Mules (15-5) were making their first appearance in a regional final in their fourth trip to the NCAA championships.
Bray also picked up three ground balls and won two draw controls. Bray leads the Continentals with 45 assists. Anne Graveley '11 chipped in four goals, one assist and two draw controls. Libby Schultz ‘12 and Rave scored two goals apiece. Rachel Friedman ’13 chipped in one goal and one assist. Friedman also recorded a game-high six ground balls, won two draw controls and forced three turnovers.
Fowler played all 60 minutes in goal and stopped five shots. Fowler leads Division III with a 6.19 goals against average. Lauren Sokol ‘12 tallied four ground balls and three caused turnovers.
Bray set the tone for the Continentals with two goals in the opening 40 seconds of the first half, and Hamilton never trailed. Bray won the opening draw and sent a shot past the Mules’ goalie 15 seconds in. Just 25 seconds later, she scored another unassisted goal to give Hamilton a 2-0 lead. The Mules scored their first goal at the 24:51 mark.
Hamilton began to pull away by scoring the next three goals. Ashley Allen ‘12 scored her 14th goal at 21:52. Then Bray sent a pass ahead to Graveley who eluded a defender and fired a shot past the goalie. Graveley earned an assist when Schultz scored with 17:44 left in the first half to put Hamilton up 5-1.
Hamilton began to pull away by scoring the next three goals. Ashley Allen ‘12 scored her 14th goal at 21:52. Then Bray sent a pass ahead to Graveley who eluded a defender and fired a shot past the goalie. Graveley earned an assist when Schultz scored with 17:44 left in the first half to put Hamilton up 5-1.
With a little over nine minutes left in the half, Colby scored its second goal. Schultz answered with her 28th goal with 5:34 left to make the score 6-2. With just 28.5 seconds left in the first half, the Mules scored an unassisted goal to cut their deficit to three going into the break.
The teams provided a furious offensive pace early in the second half as 12 goals were scored in the first 10:30. The Continentals came out strong with three goals in the first two minutes. Graveley put Hamilton up 7-3 less than a minute in. Rave then scored back-to-back goals just 26 seconds apart to give Hamilton a 9-3 lead. Rave leads Hamilton with 42 goals.
The Mules did not go away quietly. Colby capitalized on a free-position shot at the 27:48 mark, and scored again 1:31 later to get within four. Friedman scored her 39th goal at 25:57. The Mules answered 1:15 later with another goal on a free-position shot.
Graveley scored back-to-back goals to make the score 12-6. Graveley’s first goal came off an assist from Bray, and Friedman was credited with the assist on the second. Just 21 seconds later, Bray scored an unassisted goal to give Hamilton its largest lead at 13-6.
Graveley scored back-to-back goals to make the score 12-6. Graveley’s first goal came off an assist from Bray, and Friedman was credited with the assist on the second. Just 21 seconds later, Bray scored an unassisted goal to give Hamilton its largest lead at 13-6.
The Mules scored their third free-position goal of the half with 20:30 left, and one minute later, Colby cut its deficit to five. Things really settled down at that point as the Continentals concentrated on possession and Colby committed six turnovers during the next 12 minutes.
Caroline Morgan '13 took a pass from Bray and came around the left side of the goal to score Hamilton's 14th of the afternoon with 7:02 left. Colby scored once more with 2:45 left, but it wasn't enough to avoid the end of its season.
Caroline Morgan '13 took a pass from Bray and came around the left side of the goal to score Hamilton's 14th of the afternoon with 7:02 left. Colby scored once more with 2:45 left, but it wasn't enough to avoid the end of its season.
The Continentals enjoyed a 26-21 advantage in shots and a 26-17 edge in ground balls. Colby won 15 draw controls, while Hamilton won nine. The Mules were successful on 12 of 19 clear attempts, and Hamilton was successful on all 18 of its attempts.
