BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo women's soccer team (14-1-4, 7-0-4 MAC) advanced to the finals of the 2022 Mid-American Conference Tournament with a 1-0 win over Miami on Thursday night at UB Stadium.

With the win, the Bulls extended their unbeaten streak to a program-record 16 games. It was the 12th shutout of the year for the UB backline, the second-best total in program history. Fifth year goalkeeper Emily Kelly also made history in the win as she recorded the 34th clean sheet of her career, besting the previous mark of 33 set by Laura Dougall (2014-17).

Buffalo had an early look in the fourth minute as Payton Robertson settled a ball inside the box and ripped a shot on net that just missed wide.
Miami then had a scoring chance from point blank range in the 10th minute, but Kelly made a fantastic save.

In the 18th minute, Leah Wengender took a shot from well outside the box and then Marissa Foster had a good look from the other side of the field in the 28th minute that just missed wide. The Bulls continued to attack in the 34th minute as Taylor Caridi got a rebound and drilled a shot on net but Izzie Vaccari made the save and the game remained tied at the break.

Buffalo came out aggressive out of the locker room as Jasmine Guerber had a good look in the 51st minute but Vaccari made the save. Later, Cashlin Copley took a shot that sailed just high and then found Arianna Zumpano who had a great scoring chance from close range, but Vaccari made another stop.

The Bulls broke through in the 77th minute as Ellie Simmons took the free kick and played a beautiful ball into the box and Hannah Callaghan leaped up and flicked a header into the back of the net to give UB a 1-0 lead.

The UB backline came up big the rest of the way, led by Kelly who made two great saves in the final minutes to preserve the shutout.

The Bulls outshot the RedHawks 13-7, including a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal, while also holding a 4-1 edge in corner kick opportunities. Kelly made five saves for UB while Vaccari made six stops for Miami. Callaghan was named Player of the Game by the UB coaches for her fantastic efforts in the win.

"What a gritty result today," said head coach Shawn Burke. "With all that was there on the line, the strength of Miami, our players really showed their resiliency and character tonight. Miami made things really difficult but I'm proud of the group's response at half and scoring on a set piece was icing on the cake."

Up next, the Bulls will face the winner of Ball State and Bowling Green in the championship game on Sunday at 1pm.