Box Score DUDLEY, Mass. (Sept. 24) – First year forward Nina Vital scored in the 96th minute to lift the Western New England College women's soccer team to a 3-2 overtime victory over Nichols College Friday evening in a The Commonwealth Coast Conference game at Vendetti Field. The goal capped a furious comeback by the Golden Bears, who scored a pair of goals in the 85th minute to tie the game. Nichols drops just its second game of the year to dip to 7-2 overall and falls to 3-2 in conference play, while Western New England College improves to 5-4 overall and 3-1 in the TCCC.
Nicole Poli sparked the Golden Bears' comeback with a lofted shot from about 30 yards out that sailed in past the reach of Nichols goalkeeper Maureen Lynch (Holbrook, Mass.) in the 85th minute. Shannon Pescatello assisted the play.
Just 26 seconds later, Heather Mortell knotted the game as she got her own rebound at the netfront and banged it home.
Mortell assisted Vital's game-winner, sending a pass up the far sideline to Vital who placed the open shot past Lynch with 4:22 left in the extra session.
Chelsea Shaughnessy (Halifax, Mass.) gave Nichols a 1-0 lead in the 36th minute with a penalty kick, and Starleena Cash (Springfield, Mass.) headed in a rebound that hit the post from Laurel Houle (Brooklyn, Conn.) in the 53rd minute to edge the Bison ahead by two.
Western New England held a 23-13 shot advantage in the game, testing Lynch 10 times. She finished with seven saves, while her counterpart, Kalya Prout had five in the win.
Nichols travels to Salve Regina on Wednesday, September 29 for a 4 p.m. TCCC game. WNEC travels to Regis on the 29th for a 4 p.m. conference matchup.
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