Medford, Mass. – Senior Julia Schojan broke the NAIA All-Time Goals Record scoring her 146th career goal on Sunday afternoon in the NIAC Conference Championship game against the University of Maine at Fort Kent. The Falcons close out their season 13-4 with the loss while UMFK improve to 13-1.
The Bengals jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the fourth minute of play with a goal from Sherifatu Sumaila. Delaney McNulty tied the score at 1-1 on a pass from Schojan in the 13th minute. Twenty-two seconds before time was to expire, McNulty and Schojan connected again. This time Schojan took a pass from McNulty and placed the ball in the back of the net for a 2-1 lead. Schojan was greeted by a standing ovation and a brief celebration on the field for breaking the long standing record.
Both teams continued to battle in the second half with Fisher holding onto their 2-1 lead. UMFK's Natasha Merangoli pushed one by Paige Ciavarro to knot the game at 2-2 with about 17 minutes left to play.
Regulation time had expired with 2 goals apiece, forcing an overtime period. Halfway through overtime, the Bengals scored a goal to earn the 3-2 victory over the Falcons. In the many years the Falcons and Bengals have met, this is the first time the teams have gone into overtime.
Senior goalkeeper Ciavarro took the loss after a stellar performance in net making 17 saves. Valentina Green earned the victory for the Bengals making 13 saves and allowing two goals.