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By BEN CLARKE
Staff Writer

The Niagara Knights women’s soccer team hit a rough patch as it concluded its regular season on Oct. 7 at Plymouth Park in Welland.

The Knights, who were facing the Mohawk Mountaineers of Hamilton, found themselves on the wrong side of a 3-1 score.

"It’s frustrating we gave away six points in the last two games," said head coach Frank DeChellis. "We need to play a full game the way we did in the first 25 minutes."

Things looked promising for the Knights in the early going as they gave an offensive push to the Mountaineers. Niagara was playing a faster pace of soccer in the first half, which led to a goal by midfielder Alexandra Knox. Strong play by forward Erin Jennison gave Niagara several chances to increase their lead.

The Knights played a conservative game in the first half, not

allowing the Mountaineers any quality opportunities to score. They took a 1-0 lead into halftime.

The second half, however, was a different story. Lack of

communication gave Mohawk an early equalizer. A free kick by defenceman Somer Tambeau gave Niagara a chance to take the lead, but the shot went over the crossbar.

Mohawk would then score on a controversial offside play before adding another to seal the game 3-1.

"We stopped pressuring and let them get the ball," says DeChellis. "Only having two substitutes also hurt us."

The Niagara Knights men’s soccer team found itself in an

emotional battle to close out the regular season.

The Knights played to a 1-1 tie against Mohawk College Mountaineers of Hamilton on the afternoon of Oct. 7 at Plymouth Park in Welland.

In the first few minutes a Mohawk player collided with Knights goalkeeper Mike Norsworthy, but there was no foul on the play.

"He was trying to get the ball, and I thought our goalie could have come out harder. Mohawk was actually asking for a penalty shot while we were asking for a free kick the other way," says Knights head coach Anthony Ventresca. "I think the ref made the right call in letting the play carry out with no advantage either way."

In a back and forth game,

Niagara had key opportunities to get on the scoreboard early with two free kicks that sailed over the Mohawk crossbar.

With no score at halftime, the Knights and Mountaineers would exchange goals in the second half. Niagara’s goal came from defenseman Anthony Pesco.

In a game that saw a lot of emotion and trash talk from the

Mohawk team, the Knights head coach was glad to see his team didn’t take part in that style of play.

"I’m not a fan of verbal banter. I always stress to our players to have short-term memory when it comes to frustration and officiating on the field. Concentrate on what you’re going to do next, rather than what has just happened."