Box Score
CHARLESTON, W. Va. - Samantha Engel (Dryden, N.Y./Dryden) picked an opportune time to have one the best games in her career as the senior forward scored three times and added an assist to lead the Daemen College women's soccer team to a 4-1 victory over sixth-seeded Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in the semifinal round of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) National Championships tonight at the Trace Fork Soccer Complex.  The win propels Daemen (10-9-0 overall), the No. 2 seed in the tournament, back into the USCAA title game where they'll meet a familiar foe - the University of Maine-Fort Kent.

"The first half was a big feel out process today," said Daemen head coach Dan Dolan.  "In the second half, we settled down and possessed the ball and played our type of game.  I'm very proud of how we finished the game."

Engel got Daemen on the board at the 36:12 mark of the opening half when she scored on a penalty kick.

The Wildcat lead was short-lived, however, as the Lady Panthers tied things up on an unassisted tally by Jen Bechard in the 39th minute.

After taking the 1-1 tie into halftime, Engel put Daemen ahead for good with her second of the day, this one on a feed from freshman Caitlyn Grover (Canandaigua, N.Y./Marcus Whitman) in the 52nd minute.   

Later in the half, Engel found sophomore back Meghan Lipinoga (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Canisius College) for a header off a free kick at the 71:05 mark, giving Daemen a 3-1 lead.  For Lipinoga, it was her second goal in as many days after she netted the game-winner in Daemen's 3-2 win over No. 10 West Virginia University Institute of Technology in yesterday's quarterfinal.

Engel then added an unassisted marker in the final minute of the contest to provide the final margin.

Dolan was pleased with his team's performance, specifically singling out the play of Engel and sophomore midfielder Ashley Griffin (Orchard Park, N.Y./Orchard Park).

"Sam was absolutely fantastic tonight," the coach said.  "And, Ashley just played on a whole other level than anybody on the field."

The loss dropped Albany Pharmacy to 12-3-1 on the season.

For Engel, she now has four goals in the tournament and 11 on the season. Today's seven-point outing bring her career numbers up to 36 goals, 31 assists and 103 points in 75 career games.  Today's "hat trick" was the eighth multi-goal game of her career and her first three-goal game since the 2011 season-opener vs. SUNY Canton.

Junior Juli Prentice (Dryden, N.Y./Dryden) drew the start in goal for Daemen - her first start between the pipes since Oct. 29, 2011 vs. Fisher College.  She made four saves to earn the victory before being relieved by senior Rachel Reichart (Marilla, N.Y./Iroquois Central) in the 82nd minute.

The victory today sets up a rematch of last season's USCAA National Championship game against the UMFK Lady Bengals, a game won by Daemen 1-0 in overtime.  UMFK, the tournament's top seed, advanced to the title game with a 2-1 defeat of Alfred State University in today's first semifinal matchup.  The Lady Bengals are now 48-2-2 over the past three seasons with both of their losses coming to Daemen.  The Daemen win in last year's title game snapped UMFK's 33-game unbeaten streak while the Wildcats also own a 2-0 win against the Lady Bengals earlier this season.

The championship game is set for 1 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday, Nov. 2) from the Trace Fork Soccer Complex.