Stevenson women’s soccer closed out their 2019 regular season with a 1-1 tie against nationally ranked No. 15 Arcadia University. The Mustangs were seeded No.3 in conference, and are preparing to begin Mid-Atlantic Conference (MAC) playoffs with a rematch against No. 2 Arcadia scheduled on the road.
The team traveled to Arcadia on Saturday, Nov. 2, where they looked to beat the Knights to earn a home playoff game. During the first half of play, though eventful, both teams were held scoreless. Arcadia broke the scoreless tie late, during the 86th minute. Then Stevenson soon countered with a goal by Kierra McGee to tie the game in the 88th minute.
When the final regulation whistle blew, the game was knotted up at 1-1. During the overtime period, the Knights controlled the time of possession and outshot the Mustangs 6-1, but the game was scoreless through both overtime periods.
With the regular-season competition wrapped up, the Mustangs are ready for playoffs where they hope to capture a conference championship. They finished with an overall record of 8-8-2 and 5-2-1 within the conference.
This is coach Tati Korba’s first appearance in the MAC conference playoffs in just her third season at Stevenson. Korba said that the defense has done very well in conference play, and added that even with the defense’s strengths, they will need to stay tight and organized.
The team’s motivation is their nine seniors, said Korba. “Their loss to Messiah was a positive thing for the team,” she said, “because it gave them a confidence check.” Overall, Korba believes her team has played well, and attributes their success to their unselfish play. The coach also said that this year’s post-season play is a step in the right direction for the program and she holds high hopes for the future.
Four players received their first career All MAC Commonwealth honors this season. Senior Brianna Christie was named to the first-team, and seniors Rylie Patterson and Marissa Inglisa were named honorable mention along with junior goalkeeper Keegan Caffrey.
Christie said, “Korba has really emphasized building a good team culture since she started here,” adding, “Coach Korba wants to create authentic relationships between us (the players) and not the ‘country club’ relationships we had before.” She has done this through mandatory team dinners and one-on-one time with two or three other players a week. Christie said that Korba has shifted the team dynamic in her three years here.
Junior midfielder Mel Parncutt also added, “Coach Korba has created a great culture over the last three years through accountability, hard-fought losses, and after some trying times finally feeling like the team is coming out on the other side.”
The winner of Stevenson and Arcadia will play on Saturday, Nov. 9 against the winner of Messiah College and Albright College for the MAC Commonwealth Championship.