AVE MARIA, Fla. — The end of the tunnel was near for the Gyrenes. The off ramp was coming up, and some were suggesting AMU start getting in the right lane. However, the Gyrenes decided to keep the season going a little longer as they won their regular season and home finale against the New College of Florida Mighty Banyans 2-1. With the win, Ave Maria's postseason hopes are still alive, though their fate is now in the hands of the other teams across the league.
The first half was a defensive clinic for the Gyrenes, only allowing two shots from the Mighty Banyans. On the other side of the pitch, Ave Maria was on attack for most of the opening 45. Shots came from all over, with several players getting in on the action. Catherine Dalton logged the most shots, sending balls to the net in the 11th,16th and 26th minutes. Mia Melton also had a shot in the first half in the 14th minute, but her attempt was saved by the goalkeeper. Towards the end of the frame, Sarah Humphries had two chances at the net, one in the 37th minute and another in the 43rd minute, but none could find the back of the net as the Gyrenes went into the halftime break tied at 0-0.
The second half was a different story for both teams, as both the Gyrenes and Mighty Banyans' offenses found their stride. The Mighty Banyans tried to get on the board, but Emma Schweitzer stopped their attempt in the 52nd minute.
In the 62nd minute, Claire Wrobleski got by the defense and found the back of the net to break the tie and put the Gyrenes on the board at 1-0. It was Wrobleski's seventh goal of the season and the first goal for Ave Maria since October 14.
The Mighty Banyans had another chance in the 67th and 77th minutes, but Schweitzer again denied them both times. Arianna Sebion Calvesio was getting in on the offensive, but her shot was saved by the goalkeeper in the 77th minute.
The 82nd minute of the match was filled with high octane offense, as Melton found the back of the net to extend the lead to 2-0. It was Melton's first goal of the season and the first time the Gyrenes scored multiple goals in a match since their 3-1 win over Talladega September 7.
However, New College did not go quietly into the night and responded almost immediately. Still in the 82nd minute, New College was awarded a penalty kick and fired the shot into the back of the net to get back within one.
Ave Maria was able to hold for the final eight minutes of the match and did not allow another scoring chance for the Mighty Banyans. When the final whistle blew, Ave Maria walked off the pitch with a 2-1 win.
"We talked about, before the game, keeping the past in the past. Even though we were sad about results in the past, especially all those draws that we still had one game to go, and last home game for the seniors no matter what," said Head Coach Tyler Rosser after the win. "And so, I feel] just really grateful. Proud of their effort. I think they controlled the majority of the game, even with the wind. Grateful for the seniors to go out on Gyrene Field with a win."
With that win, Ave Maria finishes the regular season with a record of 4-5-6 and a Sun Conference record of 1-3-4. The Gyrenes now have seven points in the standings which for the time being leapfrogs them into sixth place over the Warner Royals.
The path to the Sun Conference Tournament is pretty simple for the Gyrenes, and is all dependent on three matches. First, Ave Maria needs Webber to either beat or tie Warner on Wednesday, October 28. If Warner beats Webber, the Royals will have one more point than the Gyrenes and knock them out of sixth place. As for Webber, if they beat Warner, Ave Maria owns the tiebreaker with a better goal differential than the Warriors, even including a max four-goal win in Webber's favor.
If the Gyrenes are still alive after that match, then they need New College to beat the Bees, keeping SCAD at five points. Like Warner, if SCAD wins, they will have one more point than the Gyrenes and push Ave Maria out of the postseason. That match is set for Thursday, October 29.
If the Mighty Banyans get the win, the Gyrenes need to survive one more match on Saturday as Southeastern takes on the Bees. Again, Ave Maria needs the Bees to remain at five points behind them in the standings. The Gyrenes can only spare one tie from SCAD, as two ties would match each team with seven points, and goal differential tiebreaker would go to SCAD.
"We've done everything we needed to do today and so it will be fun to watch Wednesday and Thursday and Lord willing Saturday, but I think either way...if the season is over, we will have some fun. If the season is not, we will keep going," said Rosser.
If all three matches break the Gyrenes' way, the Sun Conference tournament begins November 4.
