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JWU holds off Mount Ida in GNAC semifinals
for 1-0 win, Norwich takes down Lasell, 4-2

Senior Ray Durski (Monroe, N.J.) scored in the 72nd minute to give the top-seeded Johnson & Wales University men's soccer team a thrilling 1-0 win over fifth-seeded Mount Ida College in the semifinals of the 2014 GNAC Championship at the Scotts Miracle-Gro Athletics Complex on Tuesday evening. 

The Wildcats advance to Saturday's GNAC Championship Game and will host second-seeded Norwich University, which defeated third-seeded Lasell College, 4-2, Tuesday night in Northfield, Vt. 

For JWU, it marks the second straight season and 10th time in the program's history it will play for the GNAC Championship and a bid to the NCAA Division III Championship. Meanwhile Norwich will be looking to win its fifth GNAC title and its first since 2008 on Saturday. Head to head, Johnson & Wales defeated Norwich, 1-0, earlier this season back on October 13.

#1 JOHNSON & WALES 1, #5 MOUNT IDA 0
PROVIDENCE, R.I. –  "This was a solid team win," said JWU head coach David Kulik.  "Everyone pitched in and played their role and we're excited to host the GNAC Championship on Saturday. 

Johnson & Wales improved to 14-5-1 on the season while Mount Ida fell to 9-9-1 for the year.

Johnson & Wales had control of the contest throughout the first half with a 7-2 advantage in shots and an 8-1 advantage in corners.  The Wildcats couldn't capitalize, however as the game headed into halftime in the scoreless tie.

JWU again had several opportunities early in the second half, including a ten second stretch with three shots on goal, but couldn't find the back of the net as the game remained scoreless.  In the 72nd minute, senior Kyle Metz took a ball down the right sideline and sent a crossing pass to Durski who put a shot into the lower right corner of the net to give the Wildcats the 1-0 lead.  JWU then held on for the 1-0 victory, outshooting Mount Ida by an 18-5 margin for the contest.

Senior Ryan Dzierzawski (Oakland, Mich.) extended his scoreless streak to 562:59 to earn the shutout victory while senior Mat Pils had three saves in the setback for Mount Ida.

#2 NORWICH 4, #3 LASELL 2
NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Conor Fitzgerald wasted little time putting Lasell (9-9-1) up 1-0 as the junior forward tallied his team-leading 12th goal of the season by slicing a shot off the left post and into the back of the net in the fourth minute.

Norwich answered in the 16th minute with senior team captain Chris Bristol (Clinton, Conn.) blasting a side volley into the top of the net off a throw in from DJ Spears (San Antonio, Texas) to knot the game up at 1-1. The goal was Bristol's seventh of the season.

Spears gave Norwich the lead in the 27th minute with a perfectly struck ball that left Lasell goalkeeper Miguel Colmenares no chance for Spears' second goal in as many playoff games. Senior Ryan Curley (East Haddam, Conn.) picked up the assist on the goal.

Freshman Bryan Mazzola (Ridgefield, Conn.) pushed the lead to 3-1 in the 36th minute with a strike over the outstretched hand of Colmenares into the top right corner of the net for his third goal of the season.

Sophomore Jacob Zimmerman (Litchfield, N.H.) extended the Cadets' lead to 4-1 in the 56th minute for his GNAC-leading 17th tally of the season.

Fitzgerald scored again for Lasell in the 71st minute when he fired a shot past NU goalkeeper Christian Hallstrom (Las Vegas, Nev.) after a scramble in front of the net off a corner kick.

However, that's as close as Lasell would get as the Cadets walked away with the 4-2 victory and improved to 9-3-1 all-time against the Lasers.

Courtesy of JWU & Norwich Athletics Communications

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