Emerson Upsets Lasell in GNAC Semi-Finals

Newton, Mass.- Sixth seeded Emerson College continues on a five game winning streak as they upset the number two seed Lasell College in the semi-finals of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's soccer tournament, 2-1, on Tuesday afternoon at Taylor Field. 

The first fifteen minutes passed in the game without a shot from either side.   Lasell eventually got off three attempts before Emerson even had one, but it was just one shot that the Lions needed to take the lead.

With 24 minutes elapsed in the contest, Emerson's freshman forward Chris Nenshati (Swampscott, Mass.) took the Lion's first shot of the game.   Nenshati made his way through three Lasell defenders starting just outside the midfield circle, coaxing goalkeeper Julian Dutton (Madison, Conn.) to challenge him for the ball.  As Dutton made an attempt to dive for the ball, Nenshati pitched a high shot over the keepers head, putting the Lions ahead, 1-0.

Ten minutes later, the Lions were awarded a direct kick from 30 yards out after a Lasell foul. Casey Shane (New York, NY) curled a perfect pass to Ken Nikravesh (Geneva, Switzerland) who nailed a 19 yard goal to the high right corner of Lasell's net, giving the visitors a two goal advantage.

The hosts had three times as many shot opportunities as Emerson in the first half, but the Lasers were only on target with three of those chances.  Lion goalkeeper Noah Price (Apex, NC) turned away each of those attempts, creating a first half shutout.

The Lasers kept the ball in Lion territory for most of the second half, though they generated only five shots in the 45 minutes.  With just 2:41 left in the match, Lasell's senior midfielder Shane Vinnicombe (Pomfret Center, Conn.) initiated a pass from the sideline to freshman forward Eric Fournier (Meriden, Conn.) who was two steps off of the midfield circle.  Fournier took a chance by launching the long distance shot, which paid off, marking the Lasers only goal of the contest.

Price had a strong day in net for Emerson, making four saves, en route to the GNAC semi-final victory.   The Lions (12-7-0) will face top seeded St. Joseph's College of Maine on Saturday, November 7^th in the GNAC Finals, in Standish, Maine. Game time has yet to be announced.

Lasell walks away from the tournament with a 10-6-3 overall record and will await word on the 2009 ECAC New England Division III Tournament.