Elmira College Soaring Eagles (3-10-0, 2-4-0 E8) vs. Hartwick College (8-3-2, 2-2-2)
Saturday, October 24, 2015 | 12:00 P.M. | Oneonta, NY - Elmora Field
Live Coverage

Elmira, NY -- Although the Elmira College women's soccer team suffered its fourth-straight Empire 8 Conference loss on Tuesday, a late-season run could still earn the Soaring Eagles a spot in the postseason tournament.

That push to the postseason begins Saturday, October 24th, when the Soaring Eagles travel to Hartwick College for a must-win conference game against the Hawks at 12:00 p.m.

Last Time Out
The nationally-ranked Ithaca College Bombers came to Campus Field and handed the Purple and Gold a 4-0 defeat on Tuesday afternoon. The No. 25 Bombers scored thrice in the first half, and leading scorer Kelsey King added her second tally of the game in the 50th minute. Although the visitors outshot EC, 27-to-13, the shot attempts were nearly equal in the first half, 12-to-10 in favor of Ithaca. Despite the quantity of shots for Elmira, Bomber keeper Beth Coppolecchia made seven of her nine saves in the opening period en route to the clean sheet.

Must-Win
The Hawks are currently tied with Houghton College for the fourth and final qualifying spot for the E8 tournament with eight points apiece. EC is tied with St. John Fisher College for sixth place in the standings, each with six points. In order for the Soaring Eagles to capture the fourth seed, they must beat Hartwick on Saturday, although winning the remaining two conference games on the schedule does not guarantee a postseason berth. Elmira would still need help from Fisher and Alfred University, Houghton's remaining two conference opponents, to defeat the Highlanders.

Career Saves List
With nine saves against Ithaca, Gabe Carmona '18 is now 10th all-time in program history with 164 career saves, surpassing teammate Amanda Banner '17 (160). In 11 appearances this season, the second-year goalkeeper has a career-high 87 saves. The Sylmar, CA, native is second in the Empire 8 in saves and saves per game with 7.91. Carmona needs 80 more saves to reach Megan Lowe '13 for ninth-place all-time.

All-Time Series
The Hawks currently hold an advantage in the all-time series, 13-8-4. The last two meetings have each resulted in double-overtime draws, 0-0 in 2014 and 2-2 in 2013. The last win for the Purple and Gold over Hartwick came in 2011, when Caitlyn Criscuolo '14 scored twice to fuel the 2-1 victory. From 2000-06, EC went 5-1-1 vs. the Hawks, including four straight wins from 2002-05.

Scouting Hartwick
Hartwick boasts an 8-3-2 overall record, but is only 2-2-2 inside the Empire 8. The Hawks also hold a 5-2 mark at Elmore Field, compared to 2-1-2 record on the road. In their last four games, the Hawks have gone 0-2-2, with a 1-0 loss to Ithaca on October 6th and a 2-0 loss to Nazareth College last time out on October 17th. Sophomore forwards Sierra Bentley and Allie Ricci each have one goal and a team-high six assists, while sophomore midfielder Casey Boucher leads the squad with four goals. Junior goalkeeper Megan McGillycuddy leads the conference and ranks 22nd in all of Division III women's soccer with a mere 0.52 goals-against average.

Up Next
The Elmira College women's soccer team will visit Fredonia State on Tuesday, October 27th for the penultimate contest of the 2015 regular season. Kick-off for the non-conference game is set for 6:00 p.m. at Fredonia's University Stadium.