ROCHESTER, NY (November 18, 2023) -- The Tufts University women's soccer's magical run through the 2023 NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Tournament continued with yet another high-scoring affair on Saturday at the University of Rochester, as sophomore
Elsi Aires tallied another two goals to lift the Jumbos past No. 20 Bowdoin College in play from Edwin Fauver Stadium.
With the victory, the Jumbos moved in the NCAA Quarterfinals where they will take on host University of Rochester at 3 p.m. Sunday after the Yellowjackets defeated New York University Saturday 2-1.
The Jumbos (10-5-4) wasted no time getting on the board in the 10th minute, as Aires earned a penalty kick after an on-charging goalkeeper tripped up Aires for the spot kick. Senior
Thalia Greenberg would step up and convert the penalty with a crisp finish to the shot inside the right corner to make it 1-0 at 9:05 of the contest. The goal was Greenberg's seventh of the season.
The Tufts lead would double less than four minutes later, as a mad flurry of shots by the Jumbos ended with the ball at the feet of Aires at the edge of the six-yard box. Aires gathered the loose ball, settled and fired home with her right foot to make it 2-0.
Bowdoin's best chance of the first half came with just under nine minutes left in the frame, as a shot from Stephanie Christians was saved with a dive by Jumbos first-year keeper
Gigi Edwards.
Aoife O'Reilly had a good look as well for the Jumbos with less than three minutes to play, but the attempt flew just wide of the right post.
In the second half, Bowdoin started to pressure more up the field and was awarded a penalty kick in the 56th minute. Greta Farkas would slot the penalty home to cut the Jumbos lead to one.
Tufts would endure pressure from the Polar Bears over the next 20 minutes, but Tufts pushed its lead back up to a pair as
Caroline Kelly fed a fantastic ball through to a charging Aires. Aires took a few touches as she came in on goal alone, and fired home for the eventual game-winning goal.
The Polar Bears didn't go away though, as Christians scored in 91 seconds later to make it 3-2 with just over 14 minutes to play. In the waning moments, Bowdoin had its last great chance of the game as Kyra Hacker looked to have evened the game with a header in the box but Edwards was able to get a hand on the ball, push it onto the bottom of the cross bar before pouncing on the carom to deny the Polar Bears of the tying goal.
That would be the last chance for either team, as the Jumbos moved into the NCAA Quarterfinals for just the third time in program history and first since 2005. In the previous two trips to the Elite 8, Tufts earned wins and moved onto the NCAA Final Four.
Tufts finished the contest with a 13-7 edge in shots on the night, while Bowdoin edge Tufts in corner kicks, 4-2. Kelly tallied two assists in addition to her three shots on the day, as she now has a team-high six helpers on the year. Edwards finished the game with four saves, while Charlotte Iannone of Bowdoin also made three stops.
--JUMBOS--
