Women’s soccer (9-3-1, 6-2-2 NESCAC) beat the Hamilton Continentals (8-4-4, 3-4-3 NESCAC) in the NESCAC Quarterfinals in a narrow shootout win on Saturday, advancing to the semifinals of the league tournament, in which the Ephs will play Bowdoin (9-3-4, 5-2-3 NESCAC) next weekend.
With their continued runs into the NESCAC tournament on the line, both teams battled during all 90 minutes of regular-time and 20 minutes of overtime. The end of regulation found the second-seeded Ephs tied 1-1 with the seventh-seeded Continentals, a hard-fought draw similar to the 0-0 tie between the two teams during their regular season matchup in September.
Hamilton tallied the first goal when Abby Douglas scored her first goal of the season after just seven minutes. The Continentals drove a free kick from inside the Ephs’ half into the box, and the Ephs scrambled to clear the attack before the ball took an unlucky bounce into the back of the net.
Possession remained frantic between the two teams for the rest of the first half, with both sides taking shots that were blocked or wide, including those by Ephs co-captain Shae Rashoff ’24, Parker Harnett ’25, and Ansley Burns ’26.
“We came into the game with a lot of energy, but we weren’t executing when we needed to,” Harnett said of the first half. “We were disorganized as a unit, so we were playing as a lot of individuals, but not as a team.”
Co-captain Jaquelin Nordhoff ’24 agreed. “Everyone was definitely a little freaked out because [Hamilton] came out with a lot of energy, and I would say they outplayed us in the first half,” she said. “But we’ve had a lot of games this season where we’ve had to shift at halftime or come back from being a goal down, and it’s honestly a mindset of, ‘It’s a new 45 minutes. Each half can be a new game,’ and putting the first half out of our minds.”
Coming out of halftime refreshed, the Ephs dominated the second half from the start, firing six shots within the first 10 minutes. Notably, Bria Abbiati ’27 followed up on a ball fumbled by Hamilton goalkeeper Nieve Tonna with a shot blocked by defenders off of the goal line in the 58th minute. Abbiati would go on to clock four shots in the second half with three on goal.
The Continentals created a few chances of their own, with senior Olivia Morrow connecting with a lofted cross to force a save out of Ephs goalkeeper Ana Bozzi-Mackay ’27 in the 74th minute.
The Ephs continued to press into the Hamilton half, but it took until the 87th minute of regulation time for the Ephs to equalize. After Tori Huang ’25 was fouled around 10 yards outside of the Hamilton penalty box, Nordhoff calmly stepped up to take the free kick, curling the ball past the outstretched right arm of the Hamilton goalkeeper and into the top left corner of the net to cheers from the many Ephs fans in attendance.
The game ended 1-1 in regulation, sending the Ephs into the first half of overtime with a revitalized sense of urgency. Halfway through the first 10-minute period, Meredith Tutun ’25 made a dashing run down the right side of the field and crossed the ball into the box to connect with Brianna Wright ’26, whose shot was saved by the Continentals’ goalkeeper. Nordhoff’s corner kicks connected with Ava Simunovic ’24.5 multiple times, but the Ephs could not find the back of the net. With no goals scored in overtime, the game would be decided in penalty kicks.
Blakeley Buckingham ’25 stepped up first for the Ephs, calmly slotting the ball past Claire Robinson, who had replaced Tonna in goal for the shootout. Hamilton’s Daisy Sullivan then hammered a well-placed shot into the top right corner of the net.
Second for the Ephs was Huang, whose shot hit the goal’s crossbar, and Olivia Zubarik put the Continentals in front by sending Bozzi-Mackay the wrong way.
Abbiati remained cool under pressure and buried her penalty to tie the score before Carly McMahon’s shot for Hamilton was saved by Bozzi-Mackay to the cheers of the home crowd. The score remained tied at 2-2.
Claire Tolliver ’24 stepped up next for the Ephs, slotting a powerful shot into the bottom left corner of the goal past the outstretched fingertips of Robinson.
Morrow, Hamilton’s fourth penalty shooter, then stepped up under pressure from the Ephs fans who surrounded the goal. Morrow’s shot bounced off of the left goalpost, giving the Ephs the lead at 3-2 and leaving the game in Nordhoff’s hands to finish.
Nordhoff calmly buried her shot in the bottom left corner, cementing the team’s victory in penalties 4-2 and jumping to celebrate in the arms of her teammates.
Harnett said the quarterfinal game showcased the team’s ability to bounce back. “We demonstrated our grittiness throughout the game,” she said. “We started poorly, but we were able to come back together and play as a team in the second half… We knew we were going to win that game.”
The Ephs will face Bowdoin in the NESCAC Semifinals next Saturday, Nov. 4, at Amherst, where they hope to reprise their regular season win.
“I’m excited to go against Bowdoin,” Nordhoff said. “We beat them earlier in the year, and it was a very fun game, so I’m hoping to bring that same energy… I haven’t played in a NESCAC Semifinals since my freshman year, so it feels very exciting to come back and play for the NESCAC title.”
