DEDHAM, Mass. – For the first time in program history, the Northeastern Huskies won the Colonial Athletic Association regular-season title after defeating the Tribe of William & Mary, 4-2, on Monday, Nov. 3.
 
The No. 18 Huskies have now earned the No. 1 seed in the CAA postseason tournament, meaning they will host the action next weekend at Dedham Field.
 
Delaware, William & Mary and James Madison all qualified for the tournament, along with Northeastern.
 
The Huskies joined the CAA in 2005 and have come close to earning the regular-season and postseason title multiple times. Behind some savvy veterans and up-and-coming underclassmen, the Huskies have finally broken through.
 
Northeastern has now won 14 games for the third time in four years. Their 5-1 mark in conference play is also the best record the Huskies have posted since going 6-2 in 2005. The eight wins at home are also the most Cheryl Murtagh's squad has had in a single season since going 10-2 in 2003.

Early in the game, the Huskies were challenged by the Tribe's offense, but answered with strong defensive play and outstanding saves from sophomore goalkeeper Becky Garner.
 
From the minute the game started, Garner was locked in and showcased how far she has come as a goalkeeper since the start of her career.The story of the game became the play of Garner, who made a career-high 15 saves to help earn the victory. The Somerset, England, native seemed to be able to cover the entire net with ease throughout all 70 minutes of action.
 
NU opened the game's scoring at the 16:06 mark of the first half.
 
After a penalty corner was awarded, Kelly Dunn inserted the ball to a waiting Natalie Stewart. As we have seen all year, Stewart set up Kate Carlson to rip one on net, but the redshirt junior fooled defenders and passed to her left to an open Vanessa Pryor. Pryor then fed the ball across the circle to captain Caroline Judge who placed one in the lower left-hand corner of the goal, where the Tribe's goalkeeper, Meredith Savage, could not reach. 
 
The corner was executed flawlessly and gave the Huskies a huge confidence boost as the game continued.
 
Ten minutes later, the girls in red and black would break through again to widen the gap.
 
This time, however, it would be the solo effort of emerging forward Emma Lamison that would put the Huskies up 2-0.
 
Lamison, who is well known for her stick handling ability, drove hard from midfield towards the net, deking defenders along the way. After shaking off two William & Mary backs, the forward cut right, but shot left to score the game's second goal. The goal was unassisted, and is Lamison's team-leading ninth of the season.
 
Despite the cold temperatures, the offense seemed to heat up and find a groove, becoming more and more lethal as the morning changed to afternoon. The scoring chances started to become more frequent and the Huskies took full advantage of every opportunity.
 
With just less than three minutes remaining in the first half, Kelly Dunn registered a goal for the Huskies to put them up 3-0. Lamison was driving hard to the net from the left side when she threw a shot at Savage that was deflected to the goalkeeper's right. Dunn was in the right spot at the right time and was easily able to tap it in to give the Huskies a three-goal lead and significant momentum heading into halftime.
 
For Northeastern, it was the fourth time this season the team has scored three first-half goals.
 
The second half was very similar to the first half for both teams.
 
William & Mary's offense started off quickly and pressured the Huskies' defense. NU responded, and was able to limit the scoring chances for William & Mary. 
 
The Tribe, however, would eventually break through on a penalty stroke at the 39:37 mark. Garner guessed correctly and dove right to stop the ball, but it was just out of her reach as Navneet Singh scored the Tribe's first goal of the game.
 
Just less than 20 minutes later, Marisa Dunn would give NU its three-goal advantage back when she redirected an Emma Lamison rip to score the Huskies' fourth goal of the game. It was Dunn's fourth goal of the season.
 
William & Mary would find the back of the net with four minutes remaining when Erin Menges was able to put a redirect past Garner, but it would not be enough as the Huskies walked away as the victors. 

This is the ninth time the Huskies have qualified for the CAA tournament since joining the conference in 2005. Northeastern has hosted one game at home – a 2-1 victory over William & Mary in 2006 at Sweeney Field – after becoming a member of the CAA. 

Stay tuned to GoNU.com for announcements on scheduling for this upcoming weekend at Dedham Field. 

Game Notes
• NU has now qualified for the CAA postseason tournament nine times. 
• Becky Garner made a career-high 15 saves in the win. 
• The Huskies will be the No. 1 seed in the postseason tournament for the first time.