VICTORY! Mesa Upsets Top Seed Phoenix College, 2-1, in Conference Semi's
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mesa Community College (9-6-2, 5-2-2) | 0 | 2 | 2 |
|
Phoenix College (12-3-0, 9-0-0) | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Phoenix College
| Game Statistics | Mesa Community College | Phoenix College |
|---|---|---|
| Shots (on goal) | 7 (6) | 16 (6) |
| Saves | 5 | 3 |
| Fouls | 13 | 14 |
| Corner Kicks | 2 | 2 |
| Offsides | 0 | 0 |
Phoenix, AZ - In what could be considered one of Mesa's biggest wins in recent history, the lady Thunderbirds upended the top seeded Phoenix College Bears on their home pitch, 2-1 Tuesday night. The win will send Mesa to its first conference championship contest since 2006.
Just like their first match in September, the intensity and competitiveness began right at opening kick between both squads. Mesa used an aggressive offensive attack right away to put the Bears on their heels, an attack however that yielded zero goals. About half way through the first half, momentum shifted and Phoenix College became the aggressor.
Though each team had positive offensive series, neither could score in the first 45 minutes, sending the match into the second half at a 0-0 tie.
Phoenix College continued a strong offensive attack to begin the second half but Mesa goal keeper, Hope Ruiz, played an absolute stellar match, making big stops when she needed, having five saves.
Finally, after 65 minutes of action, Mesa notched the first goal of the match, a header by Gianna DelCorso on a corner kick from Emma Rich.
11 minutes later however, the Bears tallied their lone goal of the match in the 76th minute, tying the match at one.
With 14 minutes to play, action ramped up between each team. In the 84th minute, everything changed for Mesa as Annabella Bara scored on a break away, scoring on a second attempt, which put the T-Birds up for good.
Bara's goal would seal the deal and solidified Mesa's spot in the championship match this coming Saturday.
Mesa will travel down to Tucson and play the Pima Aztecs, who defeated the Scottsdale Artichokes Tuesday night in double-overtime, 1-0. Game time is TBD, depending on the results of the Pima men's game on Thursday.
