Nov. 20, 2004

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Garden City, N.Y. - SophomoreTara Grodotzke (Rocky Point, N.Y.) hit the sixth penalty kick to lift the #8 Adelphi University women's soccer team to victory over #4 ranked Franklin Pierce in the NCAA Division II Quarterfinals this afternoon at Stiles Field. This is the first ever win for the Panthers (19-3-1) over the Ravens (20-1-1) as Adelphi now advances to its first NCAA Final Four appearance since 1992.

Trailing 2-1 in the second half, senior Dina Cali (Valley Stream, N.Y.) scored her second goal of the afternoon in the 87th minute. Sophomore Catherine Wyndham set up the play as the ball slipped through the hands of the Ravens goalie Jenna Mello (Londonderry, N.H.). A waiting Cali chipped the ball into the back of the net to knot the score at 2-2.

"My kids continue to surprise me", Head Coach Rich Ilsley said. "They really battled. After losing what we lost last year [in six starters] I never thought we'd get back [to the NCAA's] so quickly. Franklin Pierce is as good as I expected. They are a quality team."

Cali, who had just two goals on the season leading up to today's contest, gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute. Senior Josephine Coiro (West Babylon, N.Y.) set up the play on a corner kick which Cali headed into the net. Just five minutes later, the Ravens tied the score as Martta Maila (Vantaa, Finland) found the back of the net on a cross from Laura Hislop (Belfast, Northern Ireland). Less than a minute later, Franklin Pierce took the lead as Hislop scored on a feed from Taryn Welker (Wayne, Pa.) at 19:48.

With the Panthers trailing 2-1, the score was eerily similar to each of the last three meetings between Adelphi and Franklin Pierce all coming in the NCAA Quarterfinals and dating back to 1997.

The battled continued with most of the action in the midfield. The Panthers held a 23-17 shot advantage throughout, including a 5-1 advantage in overtime.

With the score tied at 2-2, penalty kicks would determine the winner. Each team traded shots, with the Panthers and the Ravens each finding the back of the net in the first five attempts. On the sixth shot, Adelphi goalie Christine Conway make a spectacular diving save to give the Panthers the opportunity to win. She totaled three saves on the afternoon, while Mello had seven saves in the contest for the Ravens.

"I didn't want it to go to a shootout," Ilsley said. "I thought Franklin Pierce would have the advantage with their international players. All of those kicks were excellent. I had a lot of confidence in Tara, she's been making the penalty kicks in practice all season."

Adelphi moves on to the NCAA semifinals which take place in Wichita Falls, Texas on Thursday, December 2. The Panthers will face the winner of the Carson-Newman/Lincoln Memorial game which is scheduled for tomorrow, November 21, at 1:30 p.m.

This is the ninth overall NCAA appearance for Adelphi and its first Final Four appearance in 12 years. In 1992, Adelphi advanced to the Championship game after defeating Sonoma State, 3-1, only to fall to Barry University, 3-2.