Mohawk Valley Women's Soccer took on Dallas College Brookhaven on Friday evening in the National Semifinals, with an opportunity to go to the NJCAA National Championship game on the line.
From the opening kickoff, Vitale had this Hawks ready for battle against a very talented Dallas College Brookhaven team. The Hawks controlled possession for the majority of the first half and although having some great opportunities, they were unable to to capitalize on those chances through 40 minutes of action.
However, in the 41st minute of play Isabella Kleban sent shockwaves through Hawk nation as she found the back of the net off of a pass by Pazia Grocholski to give Mohawk Valley a 1-0 lead, just before the half.
In any big game momentum is key, and the Hawks carried some positive momentum into the break as they used halftime to prepare for another 45 minutes of aggressiveness by the Dallas College Brookhaven.
As the second half began both teams continued to battle, and the Hawks midfield and defense did their best to take away any and all attacks by Dallas College Brookhaven. Arissa Bolton did her part as well, as she made some key saves to hold onto the lead as the game progressed.
In the 67th minute Krista Panko stepped up big for the green and white, as she found the back of net off of a pass from Isabella Kleban to add some insurance to the Hawks chances of earning a spot in the National Championship game.
However the 2-0 lead wasn't enough for the hard playing Hawks, as Panko and Kleban connected again just one minute later to make the score 3-0, which ultimately gave the Hawks the seperation they needed to breathe a sigh of relief.
Dallas College Brookhaven didn't give up despite a spirited performance from MV, and found the back of the net in the 89th minute of play, but it wasn't enough to impact the result.
The Hawks closed out the game with a 3-1 score, and earned their spot in the NJCAA National Championship game on Sunday.
The Hawks will play in the National Championship game against Delta College at 6:30PM on Sunday afternoon. For live-streaming please visit https://www.njcaa.org/network/landing/index .