ATLANTA, Ga. --- Roanoke battled #22 Centre to a scoreless tie after 110 minutes of action, but fell 8-7 in penalty kicks Saturday night in an NCAA Tournament match.  The Colonels (14-4-3) will advance and play Emory University on Sunday at the Woodruff P.E. Center.  The Maroons end the season with a 14-4-2 mark.

Both teams put on an outstanding effort, as it was a defensive battle throughout the contest.  Roanoke nearly scored early in the second half as Sarah Valero’s shot nearly went in, but Centre goalkeeper Kelli Lenz came up with a one-handed save that hit the cross bar.

Chloe Toohey almost gave Centre a goal in the waning minutes of regulation as her shot hit the post and rolled just in front of the plane, but Maya Kantor cleared the ball to end the scoring threat and eventually force overtime.

After 20-minutes of overtime action, the match was to be settled on penalty kicks.  After the first five players on each team converted, they went into the sudden death portion of the penalty kicks.  In the third additional round of pk’s, Roanoke failed to convert and Katie Stevenson capitalized on her attempt to give Centre the win.

It was a physical contest with 12 fouls called on the night.  Centre outshot Roanoke 13-9, including a 7-2 advantage in both overtime periods.  The Colonels also held a slim 5-4 edge in shots on goal.  Roanoke did hold a 4-3 advantage in corner kicks.

Valero led Roanoke with two shots on goal, followed by Rebekah Adams and Carmen Graves with two shots.  Claiborne Willis led Centre with a game-best four shots and Anne Mitchell contributed two shots on goal.

Carolyn Sarabacher finished with five saves on the night, while Lenz had four saves for Centre.

Roanoke appeared in the NCAA Tournament for only the third time, including two in the last five years.  It was the final match for senior captain defender Jamie Johnston, and Lauren Schwarcz, who is the only player in Roanoke Women’s Soccer history to have been a part of two NCAA Tournament teams.

This release is courtesy of the Roanoke College sports information department.