Gov. Livingston Advances to UCT Girls Soccer Semi Final

The year was 2006 -- the last time Gov. Livingston made the final four in the Union County girls' soccer tournament.

And thanks to their 1-0 victory over Cranford Thursday afternoon, the Lady Highlanders advance to the semi-final round Sunday where they will take on Scotch Plains-Fanwood at 5 p.m.

While the quarterfinal victory was sweet, it didn't come easily. While GL dominated much of the game, and while they never gave up a shot on goal, they had trouble finding the back of the net in their own right.

Gov Livingston started the first half with a lot of energy and had Cranford on their heels.  They came close to scoring within the first five minutes of the game but the ball hit the post.  Cranford settled down and the teams went back and forth to finish the first half.  

The lone goal came with three minutes left in regulation. On a free kick, Jen French served a ball into the box, which bounced around for a few moments before freshman striker Julia Stirpe redirected the ball to senior forward Jessica Jankowski who tapped it in from 6 yards out.

The third-seeded Highlanders improved to 11-2-1, while Cranford fell to 3-7-2 on the season. Goalie Casey Krause and the GL defense notched their eighth shutout of the season.

As for Sunday, GL will battle the Raiders for the third time this season, tying 1-1 earlier in the campaign before losing on Monday.

Gov. Livingston won their only UCT girls' soccer title in 2004 with a 1-0 victory over Cranford under current head coach Mike Roof, who is in his 9th season at the helm.