DAYTON, Ohio – Second-seeded Dayton needed just one goal, a howitzer of a shot by Diana Benigno, to slip past No. 4 Davidson, 1-0 Wednesday night in the Atlantic 10 Women’s Soccer Championship Semifinals at Bajaun Field.
 
The Flyers advance to the A-10 championship final for the 15^th time in school history, and the first time since 2016. UD holds the conference record in championship game appearances (15) and titles won (10). Dayton will travel to top-seeded Saint Louis, 2-0 winners over No. 6 Saint Joseph’s in the other semifinal. The Billikens will be looking for their fourth straight Atlantic 10 title.
 
Dayton (16-3-1) had the early offensive push, but could not get anything across despite taking five shots in the first 13 minutes. But a corner from Natalie Hegg that was seemingly cleared by a Davidson defender came right to Benigno at the top of the box. Benigno unleashed an unstoppable rocket of a shot in the 24^th minute into the upper left corner, well out of reach of Wildcat keeper Mary Grace Bunch.
 
The 1-0 lead held through halftime and into the second half, where Davidson (13-3-4) was more aggressive and matched the Flyers shot for shot (5 shots for each team). This was in contrast to the first half where UD held a 10-3 shot advantage. Benigno’s goal was her only shot of the game, while Itala Gemelli tallied a game-high five shots, and Laney Huber had two.