THE BASICS:
 
RESULT: Hartford 2, New Hampshire 1
RECORDS: Hartford (8-9-3, 2-3-2 America East), UNH (12-7-0, 4-3-0 America East)
LOCATION: Bremner Field (Durham, N.H.)

THE LEAD:
 
University of Hartford freshman midfielder Bastian Stech picked the perfect time to notch his second goal of the season. Stech, whose first score came in the season opener on Aug. 26, tapped in the game-winning goal in the 87^th minute against New Hampshire (12-7-0, 4-3-0 AE) on Saturday, sending the Hawks men's soccer team to the America East semifinals.
 
Hartford fell behind 1-0 in the 19^th minute on a strike from UNH sophomore Chris Arling, the top goal-scorer in America East during the regular season. The Hawks answered back just four minutes later, when senior Quenton Swift netted the equalizer on a perfectly placed ball in the upper-right corner of the goal.
 
Freshman goalkeeper Jimmy Slayton finished with six saves for the Hawks, picking up his first career playoff victory. Hartford will travel to take on top-seeded Stony Brook (9-5-3, 4-2-1 AE) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the conference semifinals.
 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Arling opened up the scoring in the 19^th minute, finishing a low cross that trickled through the box untouched. Arling's one-timer beat Slayton low to the far post.
• Swift got the Hawks on the board just four minutes later, driving a shot past Wildcats keeper Andrew Pesci. Swift gained possession 20 yards out, dribbled through a trio of defenders and lifted a shot into the upper right corner, out of Pesci's reach.
• With less than four minutes to play in regulation, Stech broke through for the game-winner. Hartford redshirt freshman Michael Balzan dribbled deep into UNH territory and lofted a cross through to the right post, were Stech got just enough on it to redirect it back across Pesci for the score.

 
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• The Hawks played 1,843 minutes between Stech's two goals this season. A defensive midfielder, Stech has started 19 of 20 games but totaled just six shots, with three on net.
• Saturday's game marked the fifth time this season that Slayton recorded at least five saves.
• Pesci, who led the conference with 75 saves during the regular season, made seven more stops against the Hawks.
• Senior Udi Cohen, making his first start at forward, led the Hawks with two shots on goal.

 

NEWS & NOTES:

• The Hawks (No. 5) became the first lower seed to advance in this year's conference tournament with the victory over the No. 4 Wildcats. No. 3 Vermont scratched out a 2-1 double-overtime victory against No. 6 Binghamton on Saturday.
• Both semifinal games will be played Wednesday night, with Hartford traveling to No. 1 Stony Brook and the Catamounts visiting No. 2 Albany. The Seawolves tied Albany with 13 points in the conference standings, but took the top seed by virtue of a 2-1 overtime win at Albany on Oct. 22.
• The last time Hartford was the No. 5 seed was in 2011. The Hawks beat No. 4 UMBC in the quarterfinals and knocked off No. 1 Boston University in the semis, but fell to Stony Brook in the title game.
• Freshman Gael Kisombe and junior defender Andre Morrison each made their 20^th start in 20 appearances this season.

 
 
UP NEXT:
The Hawks will visit Stony Brook (9-5-3, 4-2-1 AE) on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. for an America East semifinal matchup. The Seawolves picked up a 3-1 victory at Hartford during the regular season, with junior midfielder Thibault Duval accounting for two goals. The Hawks led, 1-0, in that match before Stony Brook struck three times during a seven-minute stretch late in the second half.