NORTON, Mass. -- Sophomore striker
Karina Contreras (Pawtucket, R.I.) poached a Salve Regina defensive clearance and slipped the ball past the near post while shrugging off defenders to give the Wheaton College (Mass.) women's soccer team their lone goal in a 1-1 draw with the Seahawks on Saturday in the final regular season New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference game at Mirrione Stadium.
The Lyons are now 10-4-3 overall and finished the regular season at 7-2-2 in the NEWMAC. Wheaton secured the number three seed in the NEWMAC Championship Tournament and will host sixth-seeded Babson College on Tuesday, November 3 at 2:00 p.m. Salve Regina is now 10-3-5 and also finished at 7-2-2 in the NEWMAC. The Seahawks captured the second seed and will host number seven seed Clark University on November 3 at 1:00 p.m.
Prior to the match, the Lyons honored their four seniors and paid tribute to seniors
Gina DeBeradinis (Grafton, Mass.),
Mackenna Reynolds (Longmeadow, Mass.),
Mikaela Reynolds (Longmeadow, Mass.) and
Maya Thomas (Goffstown, N.H.).
Contreras was the lone goal-scorer for Wheaton in a match that saw limited offensive opportunities for both teams. Sophomore
Camila Leiva (Warwick, R.I.) led the Lyons with five shots and three on-target attempts while first year
Skye Gibbons (Weymouth, Mass.) also steered a shot towards goal. Sophomore goalkeeper
Olivia King (Simsbury, Conn.) made six saves throughout the conference after senior
Mikaela Reynolds (Longmeadow, Mass.) got the start between the posts.
First year forward Tori Spadavecchia (Monmouth Beach, N.J.) had two shots on target and buried the second for the tying goal in the second half. First year Sienna Mastroianni (Whittinsville, Mass.) and senior Carah Leclair (Bellingham, Mass.) earned assists on the tying goal while senior goalkeeper Sabrina Lawless (Milford, Conn.) made four saves on five shots faced.
Wheaton and Salve entered the match in the midst of a battle for second place in the NEWMAC conference. Salve only needed a draw to stay afloat in the second seed while Wheaton needed to win to overtake the Seahawks in the standings. This shaded the approach each team took at the start of the game. Wheaton was sharp and attentive as they sought out an early goal, while Salve Regina was happy to let the game come to them as they looked to absorb pressure on defense. Salve was first to put a shot on goal despite their defensive posture, and they forced King to make three saves in three minutes halfway through the first. Wheaton shrugged off five consecutive corner kicks for the Seahawks before Leiva tallied the first shot on goal for Wheaton. The chances in the opening frame were extremely limited, and the game stayed scoreless through halftime.
It took the Lyons only 58 seconds of play in the second half to break down the Seahawks defense and take a 1-0 lead. Contreras was at the tip of the spear for Wheaton following an intercepted pass deep in the Lyons' attacking third. The speedy striker kept her eye on the ball as she picked a defender's pocket to give herself a one-on-one chance with Lawless. The sophomore dynamo beat Lawless to her right and rolled the ball into the left corner of the net with ease to put Wheaton in front.
The goal prompted an immediate response out of Salve as they began their search for an equalizer. The visitors started to stretch the field to its limit and the Lyons quickly found themselves on the back foot. King kept the lead intact with an incredible diving save from a shot only a few feet in front of her, but the dam broke soon after. A Salve throw-in from their offensive third gave the Seahawks fantastic field position to launch an attack. The Lyons defended well, but Leclair and Mastroianni were able to wriggle out of the tight spaces left for them with some quick passing. Mastroianni came away from her marker with her head up, and found Spadavecchia waiting on the near post. One touch settled the ball and the next fired towards the near post past King, and the Seahawks had found their equalizer. The Lyons were left with very little time to retake the lead, not helped at all by the Seahawks' return to a defense-first mentality.
Wheaton came close in the 81st minute when Leiva swerved past the Seahawks back line and even beat Lawless off her line. Her shot from a tough angle was cleared off the goal line by a scrambling center back to keep the contest even. The Lyons put one more shot on goal, but Lawless was there to make a routine save, and the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
Wheaton and Salve Regina will await the results from the other NEWMAC games today before their seeds are determined for the 2026 NEWMAC Women's Soccer Championship Tournament.
