THE BASICS:
 
RESULT: Hartford 1, Vermont 0
RECORDS: Hartford (13-4-1), Vermont (7-8-4)
LOCATION: Al-Marzook Field at Alumni Stadium (West Hartford, Conn.)

THE LEAD:
 
One week after claiming its third-consecutive share of the America East Regular-Season title, the University of Hartford women's soccer team punched the program's third-straight ticket to the America East Championship title match on Sunday, defeating No. 6 Vermont in semifinal actions by a 1-0 count on Al-Marzook Field. Freshman defender Skylar Vitiello scored on a long strike in the 76th minute to propel the second-seeded Hawks to the win.

Hartford also received solid play from Jessica Jurg, who was named America East Goalkeeper of the Year for the second-straight season earlier this week. Jurg came up with three saves, as the Hawks shut out their fourth-straight league opponent.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Both keepers came up with impressive stops between the posts to keep the match scoreless for quite some time. After halftime, Hartford picked up the pressure, forcing Vermont's Coco Speckmaier to come up with five huge saves within the first 10 minutes of the stanza.
• Jurg was also ready when called into action for the Hawks. She turned away what proved to the Catamounts' best scoring opportunity in the 62nd minute, a strike from Bridgette King.
• Twelve minutes later, and just moments after Julia Carr drilled a shot off the crossbar, Vitiello delivered the golden goal, propelling the Hawks to the eventual win with a long blast. Her second goal of the year, which was struck from about 28 yards out, sailed over the outstretched arm of Speckmaier and hit the upper left part of the net.
• The Hawks dodged a few Vermont bullets in the closing minutes of the match to hold on for the win. With four minutes left, Julia Smith saw a scoring threat get blocked before Sarah Martin's header 20 seconds later was punched away by Jurg. Each of Vermont's three corner kick attempts came within the match's final 3:30, but Hartford's back line prevented the Catamounts' from cashing in.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• The Hawks had plenty of scoring opportunities in the first half, but were unable to cash in 6-2 and 6-0 advantages in shots and corner kicks.
• Jurg was forced into action once during the opening 45, while Speckmaier had to make two saves to keep the match scoreless at the half.
• Three of Speckmaier's game-best nine rejections came within the first five minutes of the second half. She made impressive stops on rips by Kaila Lozada, Carr and Caitlin Smallfield before coming up with another save on a shot from Sierra Stone in the 51st minute.
• The Hawks went on to hold commanding advantages over Vermont in shots (19-3), shots on goal (10-3) and corner kicks (9-3).
• Carr led Hartford's attack with four shots, half of which were marked on goal.

NEWS & NOTES:

• With the win, Hartford punched a ticket into the America East Championship's title match for the third-straight year, and the fourth time in the last five seasons.
• The Hawks' 13 wins in 2016 are the most since 2011, when the team went 13-2-3.
• The Hawks, who defeated the Catamounts during the regular-season by a 1-0 final, improved to 27-5-4 all-time against Vermont. In addition, Hartford is unbeaten in each of the last seven matches at 6-0-1.
• In addition, Hartford remains perfect against Vermont in the postseason with a 4-0 record, having last defeated the Catamounts in 2012's semifinals.
• With the win, Hartford improved its tournament record to 21-9-3.
• Hartford's defense has been on point, having not conceded a goal in 384 minutes. The last goal the Hawks conceded was against UAlbany on Oct. 9.
• The Hawks picked up their America East-leading ninth clean sheet between the posts. With the 1-0 decision, Jurg improves her career totals to 42 wins and 32 shutouts, ranking third and second in program history, respectively.

UP NEXT:
Hartford will play for its first America East Championship title since 2006 on Sunday, Nov. 6, when it heads to top-seeded UAlbany. The match is set for a 6 p.m. start.