USF Win 4-2 in their Season Finale

(San Francisco) - After an emotional pre-game ceremony honoring six of the teams departing seniors, USF went on to dominate Gonzaga en route to an impressive 4-2 victory at Negoesco Stadium this afternoon. San Francisco (10-7-3, 3-4-0 WCC) finishes the season in a fourth place tie in the West Coast Conference with the Bulldogs (11-9-0, 3-4-0 WCC). USF outshot the Bulldogs by a 19-11 margin. This is the first time the Dons have ended their season with a victory since 1995.

In the first half, San Francisco came close on a number of scoring opportunities, most specifically a breakaway shot from sophomore forward Shuree Hyatt that banked off the goalpost and out of harms way. USF kept up the first half pressure, and they were rewarded for their efforts as senior forward Annika Schmidt made a beautiful pass to forward Chelsea Hunt who was able to beat the Bulldogs goalkeeper, Ashley Haugen at the 42:59 mark for her ninth goal of the campaign.

The momentum from the Hunt goal was carried into the second half and with just under five minutes gone by in the second period, Shuree Hyatt beat the entire Gonzaga defense to the ball and chipped her shot over Ashley Haugen for her eighth goal of the year.

The Bulldogs were able to stem the momentum from the Hyatt goal as Sara Hawkins scored one minute later, to pull Gonzaga within one goal, with 35 minutes to play.

Despite the USF offense applying heavy pressure on the Gonzaga defense the Bulldogs managed to tie the game in the 81st minute. Again, Sarah Hawkins was able to beat the USF goalkeeper off a goal mouth scramble for her team leading ninth goal of the season.

The 2-2 tie lasted all of 49 seconds, as USF was able to pull ahead for good on Chelsea Hunt's second goal of the game, and her team leading ninth of the season. The Hunt goal was set up by Annika Schmidt, whose accurate corner kick was perfectly placed in front of the charging Hunt.

With Gonzaga on the defensive after giving up the Hunt goal, sophomore Kate Nelson was able to score an insurance marker for the Dons three minutes later. Nelson's goal from 10 feet out represented the first collegiate goal of her career. Credited with the assist, was junior forward Stephanie Gray. For Gray, she finishes the season as the team leader in assists with six.

In terms of the WCC standings, USF will finish the season in a fourth place tie with the Bulldogs, as both teams end the season with identical 3-4-0 WCC standings. On Monday, November 8 at approximately 1:30 pacific time, the NCAA will announce which soccer teams are invited to play in the women's college post season. With the Dons victory today over the Bulldogs, USF has an excellent chance to make the post season for the first time in the programs history.

Finally, today's game marked the end of the line for six USF players. Annika Schmidt, Alexis Moren, MacKenzie Kerr, Alana Healy, Stephanie Beall and Laura Ott were all honored along with the five Gonzaga seniors with a special ceremony prior to the game.

Team Notes - Chelsea Hunt's game winning goal represents her fifth of the season, which gives her seven game winners through her two-years at USF. Hunt is now in sole possession of third place in that category, and is one game winning goal away from second place all-time... The victory for USF puts the finishing touches on a highly successful season for the Dons, as they clinch the programs best overall record since 1997 when the Dons won 11, and lost 8. Moreover, the three WCC wins also represents a program best, as they have not won three conference matches since the 1997 season... With the regular season now over, the team's leading scorer was Chelsea Hunt, as she scored 9 goals and 3 assists, for 21 total points... Second place in team scoring went to Shuree Hyatt who finishes the season with 19 total points (8G, 3A)... Stephanie Beall, the Dons senior goalkeeper played every minute for the Dons, compiling a 10-7-3 record with a 1.06 goals against average... Annika Schmidt finishes her two-year USF career with a career total of eight goals and 12 assists in 37 games played. Furthermore, Annika's 12 career assists, represents the sixth best in school history.