FOLEY, Ala., November 14, 2018 – After needing overtime to get past No. 11 Butler Community College on Monday, the No. 2-seed Monroe College Mustangs women's soccer team rolled on offense on Wednesday, defeating No. 7 Lewis & Clark Community College by a score of 4-1 at the Foley Sports Complex. The Mustangs win Pool B with two wins, and advance to the NJCAA Div. I Women's Soccer Championship semifinals on Friday.
 
The Mustangs advance to the NJCAA semifinals for the first time since 2015, when they fell to Eastern Florida State College. The year prior, Monroe won the National Championship, claiming the title with a 2-1 double-overtime victory over Iowa Western Community College.
 
Monday's hero Angie Ponce got the Mustangs on the board first in Wednesday's contest. She was able to work her way in close and chip one past the keeper at the 30:27 mark, giving the Mustangs an early 1-0 lead.
 
10 minutes later, Ponce was once again in close, but this time she crossed it over to Juliana Pires, who was able to beat a defender and fire it into the goal, putting the Mustangs up by two before the halftime break.
 
In the 58th minute, Lewis & Clark took advantage of a corner kick opportunity to get on the board. Boitumelo Rabale sent it in from the right corner, where it found its way over a number of defender and found the forehead of Alexandria Smith, who redirected it into the goal to make it a 2-1 game.
 
The Trailblazers had plenty of momentum going for them in the second half, but a foul deep in their zone gave the Mustangs a close free-kick opportunity. Alba Gonzalez took the free kick, and fired a rocket past a line of defenders and into the net to halt the Trailblazers' momentum and give the Mustangs a 3-1 edge.
 
In the 78th minute, the Trailblazers made a mistake in their own zone, passing it back toward the net, where Maria Santin was waiting and took the ball away. She maneuvered past a defender and kicked it over the line to put the Mustangs ahead, 4-1. The Mustangs made sure to keep their opponents away from the net the rest of the way, securing the three-goal win to advance to the semifinals.
 
Marta Alemany had another excellent game in net for Monroe, stopping eight shots while allowing just one goal to improve to 14-0-1 on the season. Trailblazer goalie Mercedes King shouldered her only loss of the year after allowing four goals with nine saves, falling to 19-1.
 
The Mustangs and No. 1 Tyler Junior College have both advantage through their respective pools. Tyler will play the lowest remaining seed after pool play has concluded, while the Mustangs will take on the next lowest remaining seed. Monroe will play in Friday's second semifinal game, which is set to kick off at 6 p.m. EST.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 27 teams competing across nine sports. There are 18 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Monroe Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus as of the fall of 2017, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).