#4 Lesley 1, #1 Mitchell 0 (OT)

NEW LONDON, Conn. - Lesley University defeated the Mitchell College Mariners, 1-0, in a hard fought overtime game in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) men's soccer semifinals on Thursday. 
 
The two teams battled to a 0-0 tie through 90 minutes of regulation play, and then the game winner was scored 5:15 into the first overtime period by Lesley's Scott Wheeler (East Hampton, CT).   Wheeler found the back of the net with a well-paced header from a sideline throw-in.

The game was a back and forth battle between the two teams on a cold day at Mitchell College. 

Mitchell had more scoring opportunities than Lesley in the game, as they tallied 30 shots compared to 12 for the Lynx.  The Mariners also held the edge in corner kicks by a margin of 12-4.  Lesley goalkeeper, Zach Almeida-Beers (Rehoboth, MA), recorded 13 saves in the win.

With the win Lesley, 6-12-1, advances to the NECC Championship game and will face the winner of the semifinal matchup between Daniel Webster College and Becker College which is being played at 6:00pm on Thursday at Becker College.  Mitchell closes out the 2008 season with a record of 9-9.

Box Score 

#2 Becker 2, #3 Daniel Webster 0

LEICESTER, Mass.- Becker College defeated Daniel Webster 2-0 in New England Collegiate Conference Semi-Final men's soccer action.

Freshman Timothy Howard (Paxton, Mass.) scored the Hawks first goal when he redirected a pass from Snjezan Telebak (Chicago, IL) into the net. The Hawks made the score 2-0 when Daniel Webster goalkeeper Joe Keene (Bristol, NH) couldn't hold onto a shot on goal and Dircilino DeBrito (New Bedford, Mass.) tipped the rebound past the dive of Keene, for the final score.

Daniel Webster goalkeeper Joe Keene made 4 saves in a losing effort. The Eagles finished the season with a 9-8 record. Becker goalkeeper Aaron Fill (Delta, B.C) made 5 saves in a winning effort. The Hawks improved to 10-8-1, as they now advance to the New England Collegiate Conference Finals. Becker will host Lesley University on Sunday at 1pm on Alumni Field. Daniel Webster concludes their 2008 campaign at 9-8.

 Box Score

 Stories Courtesy of Mitchell and Becker Sports Information Offices

2008 NECC MEN'S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Semifinals - Thursday, October 30
#4 Lesley (3-3, 5-12-1) at #1 Mitchell (6-0, 9-8), 2:00 p.m., LU 1 MC 0 (OT)
#3 Daniel Webster (4-2, 9-7) at #2 Becker (4-2, 9-8-1), 6:00 p.m., BC 2 DWC 0

 Championship Match- Sunday, November 2
#4 Lesley at #2 Becker, 1:00 p.m. (at higher seed)