Grant-Keane Breaks Assist Record As Ithaca Moves On In E8 Tournament
ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College women's soccer team (15-2-0) defeated St. John Fisher (9-11-0) early Saturday afternoon, dropping the Cardinals by a score of 6-2 in the first round of the Empire 8 Tournament. The win moves the Bombers into the Empire 8 Championship game for the second-straight season.
Senior
Amanda Callanan (Ballston Spa, N.Y./Ballston Spa) and sophomore
Kelsey King (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh) both scored a pair of goals in the contest, while senior
Ellyn Grant-Keane (Lansing, N.Y./Lansing) and freshman
Holly Niemiec (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) each chipped in with one goal. Grant-Keane also added an assist in the victory, making her Ithaca's all-time assist leader.
Sophomore goalkeeper
Beth Coppolecchia (Katonah, N.Y./Somers) stopped 4-of-6 shots in the first 79:23 of play, while senior
Becca Lewis (West Hartford, Conn./Hall) held the Cardinals scoreless in the final 10 minutes of the contest.
King got the Bombers on the board early, scoring her first of the day on a feed from Niemiec in the third minute. King's tally marked her 11th of the season, and gave Ithaca the early 1-0 lead.
Callanan added to the Bomber lead in the 26th minute, netting her first of the game on a penalty kick. Callanan's tally marked her third penalty kick goal of the season and gave Ithaca the 2-0 advantage.
Just 43 seconds into the second half, King made a great individual effort and scored to put the Bombers up, 3-0. The goal marked her second of the afternoon and team-leading 12th score of the season.
The Cardinals finally got on the board in the 47th minute, responding with a goal just 22 seconds after the Bombers' third score.
Grant-Keane would score Ithaca's fourth goal of the game in the 53rd minute. She took a feed from fellow senior
Jackie Rodabaugh (Mill Hall, Pa./Central Mountain) on the far side of the box, eventually spinning and firing a shot past the sprawling Fisher goalkeeper for her fourth tally of the season.
Just over six minutes later the Bombers struck again, taking a 5-1 lead on Niemiec's first collegiate goal. Grant-Keane assisted on the play, marking the 30th assist of her career. Grant-Kean now holds Ithaca's all-time assist record, previously held by 2012 graduate
Julie Winn (Sutton, Mass./Sutton).
Both teams exchanged goals in the final 20 minutes of play, including Callanan's second of the game to give Ithaca the 6-2 victory.
The Bombers move on to play Nazareth in the Empire 8 Championship game, set to start at 12 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 10 at Carp Wood Field.