November 3, 2001

GENEVA, N.Y.--The William Smith College field hockey team defeated The College of Wooster, 4-1, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to advance to the Regional Championship. The Herons got two goals from senior forward Jackie Hall (Berkshire School/Newport, R.I.), including the game-winner to down the Fighting Scots.

William Smith took control of the game early, pressuring Wooster in its own end for much of the half. The Herons' aggressive play finally paid off at the 11:07 mark when junior back Neely Wakeman (Holderness School/Cohasset, Mass.) redirected a shot by senior midfielder Nicky Livingston (Whitney Point/Whitney Point, N.Y.) into the net for a 1-0 lead. Just over a minute later, junior midfielder Erin Weir (Blair Academy/Califon, N.J.) set up Hall's first goal on penalty corner to double the lead. William Smith forced 10 corners in the first half. With 5:09 to go in the half, junior forward Sheila McKevitt (Clinton/Clinton, N.Y.) buried a pass from Livingston to give the Herons a 3-0 advantage.

William Smith kept up the pressure early in the second half. At the 29:10 mark, Weir and Hall connected again off a penalty corner for the Herons fourth and final goal of the contest. Five minutes later, Wooster senior midfielder Miriam Esber (Talawanda/Oxford, Ohio) broke up the shutout with a blast off a penalty corner, but the Herons went on to the 4-1 victory.

In goal for the Scots (16-4), first-year Beth Skelton (Washinton-Lee/Arlington, Va.) and sophomore Becky McAtee (Lancaster/Lancaster, Ohio) each played a half, making five and three saves, respectively. Sophomore goalie Jessica Kulesa (Garden City/Garden City, N.Y.) made one save for the Herons.

William Smith Head Coach Sally Scatton was pleased with her team's effort.

"Our seniors, especially Jackie Hall and Nicky Livingston, did a nice job, but it was a total team effort across the board," said Scatton. "I'm excited to advance. Sometimes being at home can be a distraction, but we were able to focus and execute today."

The Herons (14-3) will now host Skidmore College (14-2), 4-2 winners over Mount Holyoke College in the other second round game, in an all-UCAA match up at 1 p.m., on Nov. 4. William Smith edged the Thoroughbreds 2-1 in overtime in Geneva on Sept. 22.

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