Greensboro, N.C. -- Dana Di Bruno scored two goals and passed for one assist to lead the College of New Jersey to a 3-0 win an NCAA Division III semifnal match at Macpherson Stadium on Friday. 

TCNJ improves to 22-0, while Tufts University has their season come to an end at 15-4-2. These two teams met in the NCAA Championship game in 2000 as the Lions came away with a 2-1 win to collect the title. 

TCNJ faces the winner of the other semifinal game between Messiah College and the University of Chicago currently in progress. The two winners meet Saturday at 1:00 p.m. for the 2005 championship crown. 

TCNJ’s sophomore Dana DiBruno added five points in the game, including the game-winning goal. DiBruno broke TCNJ’s single-season scoring record in the match as she surpassed Traci Tapp’s 46 points (22g, 2a, 1998). DiBruno now has a team-leading 48 points on 20 goals and eight assists. 

TCNJ struck first as DiBruno scored the first goal of the match at 11:26 on rebound off her initial shot. Freshman Jamie Kunkel added the Lions’ second goal of the game at 13:07 on a feed from DiBruno and the Lions took a 2-0 halftime lead. 

DiBruno added her second goal of the game in the second half at 72:45 on a fed from Kunkel as the Lions went on to a 3-0 win. 

TCNJ’s senior goalie, Alissa Kacar made five  saves in recording her 15th shutout of the year and the Lions’ 20th of the season. Kacar now has 32 career shutouts. 

Tufts’ junior goalie Annie Ross made nine saves in the loss for the Jumbos.  

The Lions held a 21-9 edge in shots as the Lions have advanced to the NCAA Division III Championship game for the sixth time in the program’s 15 year history. TCNJ has won the NCAA Division III Championship previously in 1993, 1994, and 2000, while finishing as the runner-up in 1996 and 1998. Tufts has now appeared in the NCAA Division III Championships four times, having collected the runner-up title in 2000 and now the a semifinalist finish in 2005. The Jumbos are now 9-4-3 lifetime in the NCAA tournament, while TCNJ is now 35-11-2 in tournament play, all under current head coach, Joe Russo who is now 297-28-19 at the helm of TCNJ’s women’s soccer program. 

Post Game Quotes: 
TCNJ’s Joe Russo said of the win, “I thought we played well in stretches.” Russo, added, “Our young players responded well. Our front row just did a great job. We get great leadership from our players who have been here before.”  

Under Tufts University, head coach Martha Whiting has helped the Jumbos to a 79-33-10 record during her seven year tenure. Whiting said of the game, “TCNJ is well coached and they played a great game.” Whiting added, “I am very proud of how our girls kept playing. We had our opportunities, but just could not make it happen.” 

TCNJ’s goalie, Kacar said, “This weekend means absolutely everything. I couldn’t have had a better way to spend Thanksgiving.”