Buffalo, N.Y. – The Sacred Heart University women's soccer team is headed to Canisius in pursuit of its first-ever Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship. The No. 4-seeded Pioneers will square off against the No. 3-seeded Golden Griffins on Sunday, November 9, at noon.
 
Last Time Out

• The last time these two teams met was October 1 at Park Ave Field. The Pioneers won that game 3-1 and were in control the entire 90 minutes.
•  It started in the 16th minute when Emily Hood put the Pioneers on the board first. Just before halftime, the Griffins found the back of the net to make it 1-1. Moments into the second half, Rylee McGee regained the lead for Sacred Heart off a feed from Shea Kelleher. Morgan Bovardi then capped off the day in the 72nd minute, finishing another Kelleher assist to seal the victory. 
• Overall, the Pioneers out shot the Griffins 16-9 and dominated set pieces, earning five corner kicks to Canisius's one. Kyran Thievon and the defensive unit held strong, allowing just three shots on goal the entire match.

On Canisius

• The No. 3-seeded Golden Griffins enter the championship match up with an overall record of 8-8-2 and a 7-4-1 mark in conference play. After opening the season 0-4, Canisius found its rhythm once conference action began, finishing the regular season with two dominant wins to lock up the No. 3 seed.
• The Griffins have been narrowly outscored this season, 27-25, and outshot 216-192. Set pieces have also been a challenge. Canisius earned just 61 corner kicks while allowing 103 to its opponents.
• Junior Jessica Whitaker leads the Griffins in points this season, tallying four goals and six assists. She's been both a reliable scorer and a creative playmaker for Canisius.
•  First-year goalkeeper Chloe Tseros has been steady for the Griffins, starting all 18 games and recording 77 saves. She holds a 1.49 goals-against average and has been a steady presence in the net all season.

All-Time Series

• This Championship game with mark the fifth time these two programs will meet.
• The Pioneers currently hold a record of 3-1 against the Griffins.

Captain Bovardi

• Last game against Fairfield, senior captain Morgan Bovardi continued her dominant play. After 84 minutes of physical, back-and-forth action, Bovardi buried the game-winner in the 85th minute, the biggest goal of her career, sending the Pioneers to their first-ever MAAC Championship appearance.

Brick Wall Between the Posts

• Junior goalkeeper Kyran Thievon delivered an all-star caliber performance against the Stags. Knowing they'd need a lockdown performance in net, the Pioneers got just that. Thievon faced a season-high 25 shots and turned away all seven that were on target. While the seven saves weren't her highest total this year, her intensity and composure between the pipes were unmatched. Fairfield entered the match up with 49 goals on the season and had only been shut out twice, until Thievon and the Pioneer defense made it three.