Men's Soccer | 11/1/2023 7:10:40 PM
No. 1 seed Elmira College and No. 2 seed St. John Fisher University advanced to the 2023 Empire 8 Men's Soccer Championship match after semifinal action on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Elmira defeated Hartwick, 1-0 in double overtime in the opening match of the day, while St. John Fisher advanced in penalty kicks over No. 6 Alfred after the two teams played to a scoreless draw through 110 minutes of play.
The Soaring Eagles won their first ever Empire 8 postseason game and are in the championship game for the second time in program history (2011). It was their first home E8 postseason game since the tournament started in 2002. St. John Fisher advanced to the E8 Championship game for the fifth time in program history. The Cardinals are looking to earn their third Empire 8 Championship, having also won in 2016 and Spring 2021.
The Soaring Eagles will host St. John Fisher from the Campus Field on the campus of Elmira College at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4. The winner will receive an automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championship Tournament, which begins on Nov. 11-12.
Elmira and St. John Fisher met earlier in the regular season from Elmira's Campus Field on Sept. 23 with the two teams playing to a scoreless draw. Elmira out-shot St. John Fisher, 12-4 in the match but held a 2-1 edge in shots on goal.
NO. 1 ELMIRA 1, NO. 4 HARTWICK 0 (2OT)
Elmira men's soccer hosted its first-ever Empire 8 playoff game at Campus Field on Wednesday afternoon when it took on Hartwick in the tournament semifinals. After a scoreless 90 minutes, the Soaring Eagles (7-6-4) netted the winner on a
Konstantinos Triantafillou goal in the second overtime period to send the Purple & Gold to the Empire 8 championship final with a 1-0 win over the Hawks (8-5-4)
Elmira started the match conceding two shots on goal in the first five minutes, with goalkeeper Juan Carlos Cruz Gandia saving them both. His best was a diving save on a strong shot by Charlie Stewart just over four minutes in.
EC's first shot came in the 41st minute from Jose Navea Corporan, who collected the ball near the left touchline before cutting inside and beating the Hawk defender. The midfielder got a shot off, but Hartwick blocked his effort.
The second half started well for Elmira, who nearly found the opener on a
Martin Harguindey shot off a Corporan cross in the 49th minute. Harguindey stretched out his right foot and redirected the ball towards goal, but Hartwick goalkeeper Dante Gesamondo was able to tip the effort over the bar for a corner.
Elmira's next look at goal came in the 55th minute when Toure lost his man on an Elmira corner and had a free header at the near post but put the effort wide for a Hartwick goal kick.
Corporan nearly got Elmira on the board in the 76th minute when he pounced on a miscontrolled touch by a Hartwick defender, striking the ball first time and forcing a diving save from Gesamondo to keep the match scoreless.
Elmira won a free kick under four minutes into the second overtime period when Harguindey was fouled just outside the midfield circle.
Jhoan Chavez took the free kick and sent his delivery into the box over the head of a Hartwick player and to the feet of Triantafillou. The Elmira defender flicked the ball over the Hartwick player marking him, and beat the onrushing goalkeeper to the ball, poking it into the back of the net with an outstretched right foot and giving Elmira its first goal of the match.
Cruz Gandia kept the Hawks scoreless, saving three Hartwick shots and recording his seventh clean sheet of the season.
NO. 2 ST. JOHN FISHER 0, NO. 6 ALFRED 0 (2 OT - SJF ADVANCED ON PK'S, 5-3)
No. 2 seed St. John Fisher advanced to the 2023 Empire 8 Championship match after outlasting No. 6 seed Alfred, 5-3 in the penalty kick round after neither team found the back of the net over the first 110 minutes of play.
Fisher held a 16-5 edge in total shots and 8-1 advantage in shots on goal. Alfred goalkeeper Matthew Osmundson stopped all eight shots on goal through regulation and the two overtime periods.
The Cardinals held a 7-2 edge in corner kicks.
The Cardinals would excel in the penalty kick session, scoring on all five of its attempts, as Parker Hotchkiss, Jacob McGinnis, Reese Powers, Joey Avallone and Ryan Brown converted. St. John Fisher goalkeeper Jadon Schlierf came up with a key diving save for the Cardinals, as they advanced to the E8 Championship.
Today's postseason game was opposite of the regular season meeting between the two schools, in which the Cardinals won by a score of 4-3 on Oct. 4.
The Cardinals move to 6-4-6 on the season, while Alfred finishes 6-7-5.
2023 Empire 8 Men's Soccer Championship Schedule
Saturday, October 28 – First Round
No. 4 Hartwick defeated No. 5 Utica, 2-0 – BOX SCORE
No. 6 Alfred defeated No. 3 Nazareth, 2-1 – BOX SCORE
Wednesday, November 1 - Semifinals
No. 1 Elmira defeated No. 4 Hartwick, 1-0 (2OT) – BOX SCORE
No. 2 St. John Fisher tied No. 6 Alfred, 0-0 (2OT, Fisher advanced 5-3 on PKs) – BOX SCORE
Saturday, November 4 - Championship Final
No. 2 St. John Fisher at No. 1 Elmira – 1 p.m. – LIVE STATS/VIDEO
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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