Skyhawks earn first postseason berth in a decade

ALBANY, N.Y. (October 29, 2010) – The Stonehill College men’s soccer team shut out host The College of Saint Rose 2-0 on Friday, jumping to seventh place in the Northeast-10 Conference standings and qualifying for their first postseason appearance since 1999.

Sophomore Anthony Campagnano (Schenectady, N.Y./Guilderland) scored at 15:37 to put the Skyhawks out in front early, and junior Michael White (Lisbon, N.H./Lisbon Regional) added a second-half insurance goal. Senior goalkeeper Brandon McFarlane (Norwich, Conn./Norwich Free Academy) made two saves to notch his career-best sixth shutout of the season.

The Skyhawks pressured early, as White fired off two shots in the first ten minutes before Campagnano connected, netting an unassisted strike from the left side of the box for the only goal Stonehill would need. They added another six shots before the break, but Saint Rose junior Patrik Ohlsson (Sodertalje, Sweden/Igelstavikens Gymnasium) came up with a pair of first-half saves to limit the Skyhawks to the single early score.

The Golden Knights tried to gather some momentum in the second half, putting their first shot on target in the 67th minute, but McFarlane made the stop against a header attempt by junior Taras Panchishak (Carmel, N.Y./Carmel).  The Stonehill offense responded with four shots in the next ten minutes, converting one in the 77th minute when sophomore Kris Brassard (Barre, Vt./Tilton School) set up White on the right side, and White buried the shot from 30 yards out.

With a 2-0 cushion, McFarlane saved a shot by Saint Rose senior Mark Quinn (Pine Bush, N.Y./Pine Bush) in the final 30 seconds to hold the Golden Knights scoreless.

Stonehill wraps up the regular season with a 7-7-2 overall record and a 5-6-2 mark in the NE-10. Their final seeding for the NE-10 postseason tournament will be determined by the outcome of tomorrow’s game between Saint Michael’s College and Franklin Pierce University: Stonehill will claim the seventh seed if Saint Michael’s loses, and the eighth seed if Saint Michael’s wins or draws.