The Geneseo women's soccer team knew when they entered last weekend that they needed a victory to secure their spot in the conference tournament.
Friday night they got just what they needed, winning 2-1 against Buffalo State - their fifth straight win.
Geneseo struck first when junior Jane Matejcik found the back of the net at 25 minutes, 56 seconds of the first half. The goal came off of a difficult save by the Bengals' goalie, Virginia Porten. Buffalo State tied the game with less than six minutes remaining, but the Knights would not be denied.
Senior Eileen Coyle cemented the team's victory and a spot in the conference tournament off a quick pass from classmate Stephanie Bergin with just 1:45 left in the game. Head coach Nate Wiley said, "This was a good game for us, we were able to control the match." Junior Katie Clerkin made five saves to post the win in net for Geneseo.
The next day the Knights took on SUNY Fredonia in what Wiley called, "a miserable night." The rain and wind certainly affected Geneseo's play as they ended the game in a 0-0 draw.
"I think it was a justified result," Wiley said. "We didn't have the same motivation going in as we did Friday. Fredonia is the second seed in the conference and I think if we see them again we can be successful."
Fredonia pounded the Knights in the first half, firing off 10 shots, but Geneseo tightened up defensively and allowed only six shots for the rest of the game. Clerkin had seven saves on the day, including three in overtime.
On Tuesday the women closed out their regular season with an exciting finish, as they won at Nazareth College 2-1 in overtime. The first half was a back-and-forth battle as neither team managed to capitalize on scoring opportunities.
Nazareth struck first, scoring within the first six minutes of the half. The Knights evened the game at 79:23 when sophomore Kelly Bergin netted her third goal of the season. Bergin later scored the game-winning goal in the first minute of overtime. Clerkin made four saves to secure the win.
Geneseo finished the regular season with an 11-4-2 overall record; 4-3-2 in conference play. The Knights play the opening round of the conference tournament this Saturday at 3:15 p.m. as they travel back to Buffalo State.