QUEENS, N.Y. – Isabelle Aviza scored the golden goal only seconds into extratime on Sunday afternoon, as the St. John’s women’s defeated Providence College, 2-1, in the quarterfinal round of the Big East Tournament.
The Red Storm (11-5-2, 6-3-1) advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2016. The Johnnies will face off against Xavier University on Thursday evening in Cincinnati. The Friars fell to 10-6-3, 5-6-2.
“I thought that was a tremendous team effort,” St. John’s head coach Ian Stone said. “We dug really deep and found a way to get a result against an excellent Providence team.”
Aviza’s fourth goal of the season came just 24 seconds into extratime.
Just inside the 18-yard box, Aviza took possession of a loose ball before rocketing her shot to the right corner of the cage. The strike went over the head of the goalkeeper.
Frederique St.-Jean tallied the Johnnies’ first goal, her second goal of the campaign. The Red Storm defender found the back of the net 34 seconds after entering the contest.
Nicole Gordon picked up her eighth assist of the year on St.-Jean’s goal.
The Red Storm needed just one shot attempt to get on the board, as St.-Jean struck in the 31st minute on the team’s first chance. Gordon maneuvered around her defender before sending a long pass inside the box to St.-Jean. The Quebec, Canada native then sent a towering shot to the left corner of the cage, giving the Johnnies a 1-0 advantage.
In the 78th minute, Providence broke through as Amber Birchwell converted on the equalizer to knot the game.
