BOSTON, Mass. – Senior Elizabeth Somma (Windham, Maine) scored a pair of goals, including the game winner with 2:37 left in overtime as the Wentworth women's soccer team defeated Nichols, 2-1, in Commonwealth Coast Conference action on Sweeney Field.
Despite a scoreless first half, Wentworth carried play for the majority of the time and held a 16-4 shot advantage at the break. Included in those 16 shots were six on target that were all turned aside by freshman Erica Carey (South Windsor, Conn.).
The Leopards had a goal called back in the 54th minute when a foul was called after a corner kick service. However, just over two minutes later Somma took a pass from sophomore Olivia Moore (Salem, Conn.) and rifled a long shot from the left side that hit the inside of the crossbar and bounced down over the goal line.
Nichols applied pressure to Wentworth's defense and eventually got the equalizer at 78:57 when sophomore Kelsey Murphy (Maynard, Mass.) fed classmate Bryanna Goodine (Dracut, Mass.), whose shot from the left side went to the upper right corner. Both teams would have chances in the waning minutes of regulation, however neither team could break the tie.
Wentworth had a golden chance just two minutes into overtime, but a bid by junior Ashley Cook (San Diego, Calif.) was denied by Carey, who also stopped Moore's attempt for a game winner in the 95th minute. At 97:23, Somma got the Golden goal when she was fed a pass from sophomore Tori Armishaw (Scarborough, Maine) and hit a chip shot to the upper left corner.
Senior Jess Gardner (Wilbraham, Mass.) made two saves – both in the second half – for Wentworth, while Carey made nine stops. The Leopards held a 26-12 advantage in shots and a 2-1 corner kick advantage.
With the win Wentworth improves to 6-10-1 overall and 4-4 in CCC play. The Leopards will conclude the regular season on Wednesday night against Endicott. Nichols falls to 3-11-2 (0-8) and concludes its season at Salve Regina, also on Wednesday.
