No. 4 UChicago Women's Soccer Defeats Carleton to Earn First Final Four Berth Since 2017
The University of Chicago women's soccer team is Final Four Bound! The fourth-seeded Maroons took down Carleton 2-1 in the Sectional Final on their home field on Sunday afternoon to earn their first Final Four appearance since 2017.
The first great chance of the game for the Maroons came in the 10th minute when Jamie Nguyen ripped a strike from outside of the box that sent the Carleton keeper sprawling to her left. On the remind, Kamiryn Braxton Grimes tried to slot it in at the far post, but the striker rung the post as the game remained scoreless.
The Maroons maintained possession for the majority of the half as the team had the ball for nearly 30 of the 45 minutes in the opening frame. Despite the 6-0 shot advantage for the Maroons, the two teams hit the half with the score level at zero.
In the second half, UChicago came out firing on all cylinders with five shots in the first seven minutes, but the Knights' defense held strong. That was until Indira Naylor continued her stellar postseason with her fifth goal of the tournament. Naylor received a pass from Hadley Hagwell on the far side of the pitch, and the sophomore slipped through the defense, beating two defenders off the dribble, before ripping a strike that drilled the bottom of the crossbar and deflected straight down and in for the opening goal of the game.
UChicago nearly added their second in the 70th minute when Braxton Grimes curled in a shot that had eyes for the upper 90, but her strike deflected off the top of the crossbar to keep the lead at one.
The Maroons would finally find their insurance goal in the 76th minute when an incredible solo run down the near touch line by Mary Stuart Kerrigan led to a cross into the box, off the head of Tahra Minowada, and in for just the second career goal for the junior from Orinda, California.
The Knights would get a goal back on just their third shot of the game in the 86th minute, but the Maroons were able to hold on in the final four minutes to seal the 2-1 victory and their first Sectional Championship since 2017.
UChicago will now head to Salem, Virginia on December 4 as the team makes its sixth Final Four appearance in program history and its first appearance since 2017. The Maroons will take on #1 WashU in the national semifinals as UChicago looks to win its first national championship in program history.