Oneonta State will be right at home this weekend as its women's soccer team attempts to qualify for the NCAA Division III Tournament for the 11th consecutive season.
Top-seeded Oneonta will host the SUNY Athletic Conference Tournament, which runs today and Saturday at Red Dragon Field. The Red Dragons will play fifth-seeded Geneseo at 11 a.m. today in the first semifinal. No. 2 Fredonia (11-5-2) and sixth-seeded Cortland (12-4-2) follow at 1:30 p.m. in the other semifinal.
Today's winners will play for the SUNYAC Tournament title and an automatic NCAA berth at 1 p.m. Saturday back at Red Dragon Field, which is hosting the final four round for the first time since 1999. The last 10 SUNYAC tournaments took place at the National Soccer Hall of Fame fields.
Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for students.
Oneonta (11-4-3) went 7-2 against SUNYAC foes this season to win its 11th straight regular-season conference crown and clinch home-field advantage for the tournament. O-State has won nine SUNYAC Tournament titles in the last 10 seasons and earned an at-large NCAA berth in 2006.
The Red Dragons got two goals from Erin Boyle in a 3-1 regular-season win against Geneseo, which is 0-4-2 against Oneonta in SUNYAC Tournament play. Last year, Oneonta ended the Blue Knights' season with a 2-1 tournament victory.
Former Center Moriches High teammates Caitlin Burke and Kayla Brantmeyer lead the Red Dragons with five goals apiece. Burke is the team's points leader with 13, followed by Brantmeyer and Dana DeSimone at 10 apiece. Freshman goalie Jamie Chyat has played all but 24 minutes this season and has a goals against average of 0.86.
Geneseo (12-4-2) extended its unbeaten streak to eight games with a 2-0 quarterfinal victory over fourth-seeded Buffalo State last Saturday. The Blue Knights are seeking their fifth SUNYAC Tournament title and first since 1994.
Oneonta native and former Oneonta High standout Eileen Coyle leads the Blue Knights in scoring with 22 points on 11 goals. Coyle earned co-Daily Star Player of the Year honors in 2004 with former OHS teammate Breanna Gault.
Oneonta also beat Fredonia during the regular season but fell, 2-1, to Cortland on Oct. 23.
Oneonta and Fredonia both earned byes to the semifinals. Cortland advanced to the final four with a 1-0 defeat of No. 3 Brockport last Saturday.
{"HeadlineLight14"/}Men's Soccer
Cazenovia 3, Cobleskill 0
Tim Hartill scored early on a 20-yard direct kick and Gregorie Ducasse had two goals for third-seeded host Cazenovia (10-6-1) in a North Eastern Athletic Conference quarterfinal victory over No. 6 Cobleskill (5-12) on Thursday.
Hartill's bender beat Travis Hall to the lower-right corner for a 1-0 lead 8:32 into the quarterfinal. Ducasse scored in the 30th minute and again in the 63rd for the Wildcats, who finished with a 24-13 edge in shots.
Cooperstown graduate Mack Curran made three saves in relief of Hall for the Fighting Tigers, who took one shot over the last 17 minutes.
Cazenovia advanced to a semifinal against No. 2 SUNYIT (13-6) on Saturday at Wells College.
Cazenovia 3, Cobleskill 0
NEAC Quarterfinal
SUNY Cobleskill0 0 _ 0
Cazenovia College2 1 _ 3
6-Cobleskill (5-12): None.
3-Cazenovia (10-6-1): Tim Hartill 1-0, Gregorie Ducasse 2-0.
Shots-corner kicks: Cob 13-4; Caz 24-7.
Goalies: Travis Hall (Cob) 8, Mack Curran (Cob) 3; Riley Battaglini (Caz) 1, Ryan Snyder (Caz) 3.
SUNYAC semifinal
Oneonta State will play top-seeded host Plattsburgh at 3:30 p.m. today in a SUNYAC Tournament semifinal. Today's first semifinal pits No. 2 Brockport against No. 3 Geneseo.
Semifinal winners advance to the SUNYAC Tournament championship game at 1 p.m. Saturday to play for an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament.
The fourth-seeded Red Dragons (12-4-2) are seeking their first NCAA berth since competing in the University Division tournament in 1975 as a Division I program. They advanced to today's semifinals by beating Cortland, 4-3, in a penalty-kick shootout after the two played to a scoreless tie last Saturday.
O-State and Plattsburgh tied at zero Oct. 9 in Oneonta.
Evan Jedynak leads the Red Dragons with 28 points, followed by Eric Fortier (26) and Nicholas Gregg (15). Senior goalie Jonathan Korn is 11-4-2 overall with sox shutouts and a 0.83 goals against average.
{"HeadlineLight14"/}Volleyball
O-State swept
Kacy Boburka had 11 kills and Christine LaGuardia finished with eight, but Oneonta State fell, 25-17, 27-25, 25-23, to Brockport in a SUNYAC Tournament quarterfinal Thursday in New Paltz.
Brittany Calvello contributed 24 assists and Jessica Zerega had 11 digs for the Red Dragons (18-19), who blew a 20-14 lead in the second game. Oneonta also rallied from a 23-18 deficit in the third game _ pulling within one point of the Golden Eagles twice _ but lost the decisive point on a service error.
Alyssa Fitchette had 15 kills and 13 digs for Brockport (19-17), which plays a semifinal at 3 p.m. today against top-seeded New Paltz (30-5).
LaGuardia, a senior, and freshmen Boburka and Calvello earned Second Team East Division honors from the SUNYAC on Thursday. LaGuardia won her second straight all-conference award.
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