Nelson pushes Golden Eagles to E8 championship

By: Ashton Townsend

Caitlyn Nelson netted the lone goal of the game to lift the Golden Eagles to the Empire 8 Championship (Photo: Liv Metz)

BROCKPORT, NY --- The No.1 Seed Brockport Golden Eagles topped No. 4 seed Hartwick 1-0 in the Empire 8 semi-finals. Battling the tough conditions, senior midfielder Caitlin Nelson found the back of the net to lead the Golden Eagles. 

“The whole idea of survive and advance, that’s what it was tonight,” Brockport Head Coach Mike Idland said. “I think we really knew the semifinal is probably the trickiest of the three games. The big prize is attached to the game after this one, and there’s a reason Hartwick has gotten so many results over the season, and it was a slug fest out there.” 

The Golden Eagles dominated the ball in the first half with multiple chances. 15 minutes into the game, Amelia Breton found herself with the ball and the keeper out of the net. The junior sent a shot on the net that ended up being blocked by a Hartwick defender. 

Nine minutes later, Nelson slotted her fourth goal of the season to take the 1-0 lead. 

“I saw the ball getting cleared out, and I knew I had to bring it in,” Nelson said. “With the tough conditions, I just wanted to touch and shoot it, and it slipped under the goalie and found the back of the net.” 

At the half, the Golden Eagles outshot the Hawks 11-2, with six on target to Hartwick’s one. Emily McCane made the lone save for the Golden Eagles. 

The Brockport defense recorded its 15th shutout of the year in the semifinals v. Hartwick (Photo: Liv Metz)

In the second half, the Golden Eagles played a sound defensive half, allowing no shots on net and three shots total. 

“I thought our defense had been like it’s been all season, remarkably consistent,” Idland said. “One player after another, even towards the end when they started throwing the kitchen sink at us, we had the answers, and they stayed calm.” 

The Golden Eagles ended with 17 shots to Hartwick’s five in the game. Brockport is now 14-1-4 on the season. 

Up next for the Golden Eagles is the Empire 8 championship game, where Brockport will host either No. 2 St. John Fisher (11-4-2) or No. 3 Nazareth (9-6-3) on Saturday Nov. 8th. Time is still TBD.