Emory University sophomore Emily Feldman and junior all-American Lauren Gorodetsky each scored second half goals against 12^th-ranked Wheaton College (Ill.) to give the Eagles (15-1-7) a 2-1 win in the semifinals of the NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championships, and lift the team to its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Championship match.  Emory will play the winner of the other semifinal between Messiah and Misericordia, to be played later tonight. 

Feldman scored the goal unassisted at the 63:59 mark of play, using her speed to gain space with the defense before cutting back towards the center of the field, and launching a laser shot into the upper right corner of the net.  It was her eighth goal of the season.

Just minutes later, sophomore Charlotte Butker drew a foul in the middle of the field, about 35-yards outside the goal.  On the resulting free kick, Gorodetsky launched a perfect lofting shot over the keeper's head, and into the net for the goal.  The goal was her first of the season, and gave the Eagles a 2-0 lead in the 67^th minute.

The Thunder got back into the contest just over a minute later.  Alexa Sharkey served a long ball into the six-yard box, and Anna Seabolt was able to get her head on the bounce, knocking into the net for the goal, and making it a 2-1 contest.

However, from that point forward, the Eagles defense clamped down on the Thunder, limiting Wheaton's opportunity's to secure the victory, and lift Emory into the Championship game.

The pace of the second half was a stark contrast to the first, which was considerable more defensive minded.  Emory had its first opportunity of the game early on, when a bouncing ball inside Wheaton's 18-yard box found the feet of junior Veronica Romero, who chopped a shot in the air towards goal, but the save was made by goalkeeper Hilary Barreto.  Minutes later, Wheaton answered back with a shot of its own, when Annie Hamilton intercepted a clearance attempt and took a long shot that went wide of net.

Wheaton began to gain momentum, with a shot on goal by Keri Shannon that was knocked down by Emory senior goalkeeper Erica Stein in the ninth minute, and a shot wide by Anna Seabolt. 

Emory picked up its second strong opportunity of the game in the 24^th minute, when the team started to apply pressure to the Thunder again, and Feldman took a ball away from a Wheaton defender on the outskirts of the 18-yard box and sent a shot on frame that was again saved by Barreto.

However, the Eagles' best chance came of the first half came with three minutes left in the first half, when a miscommunication between Barreto and one of her defenders set up a chance for the Eagles in the middle of the six-yard box, but again, the Wheaton goalkeeper was able to make a diving save to keep the game scoreless.

The Thunder came back down the field quickly, and a breakaway shot from Kristin Rauh was deflected out of play by Stein, setting up a corner kick that Emory's defense would clear away.

The game would remain scoreless through the first half, with each team taking three shots on goal, and both Stein for Emory and Barreto for Wheaton saving each of the three attempts.  Wheaton held a 9-5 edge in shots after the first 45 minutes.

Senior goalkeeper Kaele Leonard took over for the Eagles in the second half, and was tested with a save off a header shot from Ally Witt, and later one on a shot by Leah DeMoss.

However, the field opened up on the other side as well to start the second half, with junior outside back Lauren Drosick taking a shot on goal that was saved by Barreto, and a long shot by senior Merrill Bachouros that was blocked by the Thunder defense, all within the first six minutes of the half.

In the 61^st minute, Leonard would come through again for Emory, this time on a diving save from 20-yards out by Shannon.  She followed with another pair of saves in the 63^rd minute on shots off a corner kick by the Thunder.  However, the action that would follow would decide the match, with the three goals being scored over the next four minutes of play.

Leonard totaled four saves for the Eagles, and earned the victory to improve to 6-1-6 this season.

Emory improved to 15-1-7 on the season with the victory, while Wheaton's season came to a close with a record of 21-4-2. 

The Eagles will await the results of tonight's late match, to see whether they will face top-ranked Messiah or 17^th-ranked Misericordia.  The NCAA Championship match will be played on Saturday at 6:30 PM ET at the Blossom Stadium Complex in San Antonio, TX.

Emory Notes
Tomorrow's championship game will be the 19^th played in by an Emory team… Feldman now has 20 points this season, become the third Eagle this season to reach that mark… Wheaton outshot Emory 17-9 in the game, but held just a 9-6 edge in shots on goal.