Box score

Ewing, NJ... The College of New Jersey women's soccer team advanced to the New Jersey Athletic Conference championship game, defeating Montclair State University 1-0 on Tuesday night.
 
Senior Nikki Migliori (Hamilton, NJ/Steinert) scored the lone goal of the contest less than a minute into the second half to send the Lions (11-3-2) to the tournament final. TCNJ will host Richard Stockton College in the championship game on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. in Lions' Stadium. The Ospreys upset top-seeded Rowan University 4-3 in Glassboro, NJ. The Lions will vie for their third consecutive NJAC title.
 
After a scoreless first half, Migliori took a direct kick from 35 yards out. She hit a hard shot to the right corner that was partially screened by senior forward Brittany McGinley (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) just before it rippled the back of the net. It was Migliori's second goal of the season.
 
The first 35 minutes of play offered limited scoring chances as both defenses were able to stave off any serious offensive threats. The Lions heated up in the final ten minutes as McGinley had a pair of quality attempts on net. She ripped a shot on goal from just outside the box with 41:08 mark, but Red Hawk's freshman goalkeeper Gina Policastro (East Brunswick, NJN/East Brunswick) was there to make the save.
 
With less than 30 seconds on the clock, Migliori sent a corner kick that bounced around in the box to the feet of McGinley. She quickly got off a shot that just cleared the crossbar as the opening half ended deadlocked at zero.
 
The Lions dominated the majority of the second half. The backfield play of Migliori, junior Allison Foy (Hamilton, NJ/Steinert), senior Brenna Rubino (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern), and freshman Jordan Downs (Brick, NJ/Brick) was spotless as TCNJ registered its ninth shutout of the season play.
 
TCNJ pushed hard for a second goal to provide breathing room, but the Red Hawk defense would bend but not break. Sophomore Sloan DePiero (Ramsey, NJ/Ramsey) blistered a shot in the 66^th minute, but Policastro dove to her right to make the save. In the 75^th minute, junior Allyson Anderson (Point Pleasant, NJ/Point Pleasant) came close again, firing a low shot that grazed past the right post.
 
Policastro had an excellent game in net for Montclair State as she made six stops in the contest. The Red Hawks finished their season with a record of 13-5-2.
 
Lions' freshman Cristina Gacos (Sea Girt, NJ/Wall) earned her eighth shutout of the year and first post-season win. She made three saves in the game.
The victory also marked the 399^th career win for TCNJ head coach Joe Russo. He now owns a career record of 399-48-28 and would become the seventh coach at any level and the third in Division III to reach 400 wins with a victory on Friday night.