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Emory to Face UAA-Rival Carnegie Mellon in NCAA Quarterfinals on Sunday

Emory to Face UAA-Rival Carnegie Mellon in NCAA Quarterfinals on Sunday
Posted: Nov 17, 2012

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 The Emory University women's soccer team will look for its first-ever berth into the NCAA Division III Semifinals on Sunday, when the 16th-ranked Eagles take on the 17th-ranked Carnegie Mellon University Tartans in the tournament quarterfinals at 1:30 PM in Pittsburgh, PA.

Venue Information
 Sunday's game will be played at the Carnegie Mellon Soccer Field in Pittsburgh, PA.  Tickets will cost $6 for adults, $3 for students and senior citizens, and $2 for children ages 3-12. 

Coverage
 Fans unable to attend can follow each game with both live stats (http://www.enrollment.cmu.edu/athletics/wsoccer/xlive.htm) and a live video webcast (http://athletics.cmu.edu/live).

Emory Eagles
 Emory is ranked 16th in the NSCAA Division III Women's Soccer Poll, and seventh in the D3Soccer.com poll, both of which were last released at the end of the regular season.  The Eagles currently stand at 14-1-6 in 2012, including a 2-0-1 record in neutral games, and a 5-1-3 mark in road contests.

Reaching the tournament by virtue of an at-large bid, the Eagles advanced to the round of 16 with a pair of 2-0 wins, defeating DePauw University in the first round, and seventh-ranked Centre College in the second round, with both games in Danville, KY.  On Saturday in Pittsburgh, Emory claimed a 2-1 win over 19th-ranked Loras College in the round of 16.  This is Emory's 14th NCAA appearance overall, and the second time the team has reached the round of 16, along with 2010.  The Eagles are 13-11-4 all-time in NCAA Tournament games.

The Eagles' offense has scored 52 goals this season, tied for the fourth-most in a single season in school history, and the most by an Emory squad since the 2001 team registered 55 goals.  Emory's 2.5 goals per game entering the weekend rank as the 74th-best mark in Division III this season.  Leading the way for the Eagles have been junior Veronica Romero (eight goals and four assists), sophomore Charlotte Butker (five goals and 10 assists) and junior Kelly Costopoulos (eight goals and three assists), while sophomore Emily Feldman, senior Katy Kruse, sophomore Karina Rodriguez and senior Lee Bachouros all have double-digit points totals during the year as well.  Emory averages 23.86 shots and 10.76 shots on goal per game this season.

Emory's defense has played some of its best soccer of the year as of late, recording five of their 13 shutouts this season over their last seven games.  Senior goalkeeper Erica Stein has allowed just one goal in her last 580 minutes played (spanning the last 13 Emory games), teaming with fellow senior keeper Kaele Leonard (0.44 GAA, .844 save percentage) to combine for a 0.44 goals-against average, the ninth-best mark among Division III squads to start the week.  Emory also ranks 31st as a team with a 0.619 shutout percentage, and 38th with a 0.853 save percentage.  Emory's defense, led by senior Ashley Kaiser, junior Lauren Gorodetsky, junior Lauren Drosick and sophomore Kaelyn Lucas, has limited opponents to just 6.19 shots and 3.24 shots on goal per game this year.

 Emory is led by head coach Sue Patberg, who has now reached the NCAA Tournament in six of her eight seasons at Emory, and 14 times during her 19-year career, which includes stays at the Division I University of Minnesota and the University of Georgia. She holds a 110-23-23 during her time with the Eagles, good for a .775 winning percentage, and a career ledger of 256-111-41.  Patberg is assisted by Rachel Moreland and Mike Wentzler.

Carnegie Mellon Tartans
 Carnegie Mellon was ranked 17th in the final NSCAA regular season poll and 23rd in the latest D3Soccer.com poll.  The Tartans will enter Sunday's game with a record of 14-1-4 for the campaign, including a mark of 7-1-2 in home games this season. 

The Tartans are making their first-ever NCAA Championship appearance this season, and have had a successful debut, with a 5-0 win over Cabrini in the first round, a 1-0 win against Ohio Northern in the second, and a 3-0 win over Wheaton (MA) on Saturday in the round of 16.  Carnegie finished second in the University Athletic Association (UAA) with a 4-1-2 conference record, claiming an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Carnegie's offense has been on fire during the NCAA Tournament, registering nine of its 40 goals this season over the last three games.  Sophomore Savina Reid has been the team's leading scorer with nine goals and three assists this season, while senior Brianna Magill has contributed with seven goals and two assists.  After a two goal, one assist performance against Wheaton on Saturday, junior Alex Venegas has six goals and seven assists for the campaign.  Carnegie averages 14.11 shots and 6.1 shots on goal per game this season.

Meanwhile, the Tartans defense has ranked among the best in Division III this season, beginning the week ranked 15th in Division III with a 0.476 goals-against average and 23rd with a 0.611 shutout percentage.  Junior goalkeeper Anna Albi is 13th in Division III with a 0.46 GAA and 59th with a 0.846 save percentage.  The Carnegie backline features an all-UAA first team selection in sophomore Lauren Simicich, and all-UAA honorable mentions in junior Brittany Couture and Rachel Contopoulos.

Carnegie Mellon is led by head coach Yon Struble, who has a record of 31-16-4 during his three years with the team.  He is assisted by Shannon Agnew.

Matchup History
 After playing a combined five games all-time (including this season) against their first three tournament opponents, the Eagles will face a familiar squad in the quarterfinal matchup in the Tartans, who also play in the UAA.  Emory is 17-3-1 all-time against Carnegie Mellon, including a 7-3-1 record all-time in games played in Pittsburgh.  The two teams played to a scoreless tie in their season-finale on November 3rd this season.  Emory outshot Carnegie 16-6 in the game, including a 10-3 edge in shots on goal.  Last season, the Eagles defeated the Tartans 2-0 behind a pair of second half goals, including one from Butker in the 77th minute, and a four-save performance from Stein in the first half.  Senior Merrill Bachouros also has a goal and an assist during her career against Carnegie.