The Norwich Women's Soccer team returns to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament for the second straight season, earning a spot on the last day of the regular season. In the Quarterfinal round, the Cadets will make the trip to Boston to face the top-seeded, reigning GNAC Champion Emmanuel.

Down the Stretch
The Cadets finished the regular season on a hot streak, earning victories in three of their final four contests to secure a seed in the tournament, outscoring their opponents 19-4 in the process. The stretch was punctuated by their season finale against Mitchell, where they scored the most goals in a contest since 2018.

This Season's Meeting
Saturday will mark the second time this season that Norwich will travel to Roberto Clemente Field. The Saints hosted the Cadets on Oct. 8 under the lights. Emmanuel held the upper hand throughout the contest, but the Norwich defense stood firm. In the 81^st minute, on the counterattack, the Cadets took the lead after Kat Probst (Gouverneur, N.Y.) started a breakout and found Heidi Smith (Sammamish, Wash.) for the goal. The Saints responded by scoring off a direct kick in the final minute, evening the score and netting a 1-1 draw, Norwich's first against Emmanuel since 2012.

Tale of the Tape

Norwich	Stat Category	Emmanuel
7-6-4 (5-5-3 GNAC)	Record	12-3-3 (11-0-2 GNAC)
2.00	Goals Per Game	4.56
1.00	Goals Against Average	0.78
14.1	Shots Per Game	28.1
0.50	Shots on Goal Percentage	0.56
.750	Team Save Percentage	.588
5	Shutouts	11

 
Norwich Leaders
Up front, Probst spearheads the Norwich attack with ten goals and three assists, putting her eighth in the conference in goals and ninth in total points. She is followed by Lily Briggs (Fair Haven, Vt.) and Smith, with Smith sitting fourth in the GNAC in assists (8). Also making an impact down the stretch is first-year Maddy Perry (Fair Haven, Vt.), who's posted eleven points in the final four games of the regular season.

Emmanuel Leaders
The Saints' explosive attack is led by reigning GNAC Player of the Year Sarah Dullaghan, whose 21 goals and 50 points lead the GNAC. Right behind her is Paige Letourneau, with 15 goals and 35 points, both of which are third in the conference, while Liz McCormick is second in the league in assists (9).
  
Goalkeeping
Throughout the season, several bodies have occupied the Norwich goal, with Michaela Dubey (Belchertown, Mass.) earning starts in the last two games of the year. As a team, the Cadets have allowed the third fewest goals in the league, anchored by their backline led by captains Abby Kirrane (Lunenburg, Mass.) and Beatrice Lake (Brookfield, Vt.).
For the Saints, Teigan Robie started every game between the pipes this season, posting a 0.82 goals against average and a .588 save percentage with eleven shutouts.

The GNAC Quarterfinals will kick off in Boston at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 1, with the winner advancing to the GNAC Semifinals on November 5.

November 1, with the winner advancing to the GNAC Semifinals on November