One of the most historic seasons in the history of women’s soccer at the University of Rhode Island came to a close on Sunday, as the team fell to the University of Dayton in penalty kicks with the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship on the line.
With a spot in the NCAA Tournament guaranteed to the winner, the two teams played to a deadlocked scoreless tie through 90 minutes of game time and 20 additional minutes of overtime.
To build the already-thick suspense, the teams were tied 3-3 after four rounds of penalty kicks. When URI fifth-year Mie Carstensen netted the go-ahead goal in the fifth frame, it set up third-year keeper Dani Eden for potential end-of-game heroics.
Initially, it appeared that Eden had made what would have been the most crucial save of the season. Her save on Dayton’s final opportunity looked to give the Rams their first-ever conference championship at first glance. However, the referee’s whistle stopped the URI celebration, ruling that Eden had left her spot early.
Given an opportunity to stay alive, Dayton netted the equalizer yet again. The next Ram shot from fourth-year Cierra Penny went over the bar, and fourth-year Riley Kerber proceeded to put one in the back of the net for the Flyers, giving them the win and the championship.
This was the fourth A-10 Championship appearance in program history for URI and the first since 2005. The Rams have never won the title, while Dayton has now won it 11 times.
Four Rhode Island players were named to the Atlantic 10 All-Championship Team. Third-year Aida Name, fourth-year McKenna Sylvester, third-year Lauren MacDonald and Eden were the recipients of this honor.
Looking ahead to next season, Rhode Island should not have too much roster turnover—just five players on the team are seniors or graduate students. Four of them played in the championship game, compared to 11 players who were juniors or younger in academic standing. 12 players on the roster were underclassmen.
