The Lions defeated Richard Stockton College 7-6 in penalty kicks on Friday Nov. 6, claiming its fourth title in the past five years as champions of the 2009 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC).
After the Lions dominated the field during the 90 minutes of regulation soccer, as well as in the two 10-minute overtime periods, the contest went to penalty kicks. Despite the six penalty kicks that the Osprey’s managed to put in the back of the net, senior captain and goalkeeper Jessica Clarke saved lucky number seven from freshman Dailey Todd of Stockton. Sophomore defender Maria Grady scored the winning goal for the Lions on their seventh penalty kick.
“It felt good to win it finally,” said Grady.
The Lions outnumbered the Ospreys with shots on goal during the game 36-3.
“It would have been nice to win in regulation,” Clarke said. “But it felt awesome to win it no matter what.”
The Lions receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III National Championships as first place winners of the NJAC. The brackets will be released on Nov. 9 for the NCAA tournament.
