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TCNJ leads the NJAC after a Win against Recovering Rowan.

By: Mark Barroso

EWING--The College of New Jersey women’s soccer team earned a first round bye in the New Jersey Athletic Conference Championship Tournament after defeating Rowan University 2-0 Tuesday night at Lions Stadium in a game that was altered by the injury of Rowan’s best player.

The star player is Profs forward Jess Babice, the third leading scorer in all of Division III.

The injury of Babice “allowed us to bring Brittany out of the back,” Russo said. “Lauren Giles got to play up front (from defender to forward)”.

After a collision less than four minutes into the game, Babice had to be carted off the field.

She was later seen walking with crutches to enter a white SUV. Rowan University hasn’t released an official diagnosis.   

Rowan came into the game ranked 19th in the NJAC while TCNJ came into the game ranked 22^nd.

The Lions left the game with the first place spot in the New Jersey Athletic Conference and a bye in the first round of the Tournament.

Senior defender McGinley went from defender to forward, where she scored the only two goals of the game.

Babice finished her regular season career leading the Profs with 20 goals this season. That is double the number of goals that TCNJ’s top scorer forward Brenna Rubino had this season.

With an extended rest period, the Lions’ training program will not change.

 “Practices are the same practices. They are the same every day,” midfielder Michelle Canning said, when asked about the comparison of regular and bye-week practices.

The bye “doesn’t affect practices throughout the week,” said Russo. “We will continue to do the same stuff.”

Russo is doing something right. The Lions have only allowed four goals the entire season, which is an attribution to their stellar defense.

The Profs ended the season with 10 shutouts in 17 games, but have haven’t had any in the past four games. Rowan secured the third seed in the NJAC Tournament with Tuesday’s loss.

The Lions can’t get too excited. It is a totally different game if Babice was healthy enough to play the whole game, due to her ability to create offense.

The women’s soccer team looks to improve their game through practice.

 “We realized how important it was to try and get better each practice,” said McGinley. “You have to practice like it’s a game.”

Contact Mark Barroso at barroso2@tcnj.edu