SWARTHMORE, Pa. - A constant mix of rain and snow did little to slow down the Swarthmore College women's soccer team (13-6-1), as the No. 2 seed Garnet  defeated No. 7 seed Marywood 2-0 in the opening round of the ECAC South Region Championship Tournament on Wednesday evening from Clothier Field Stadium.

Sophomore Emma Sindelar and junior Aly Passanante each scored for the Garnet, which now moves on the ECAC South semifinals to play an opponent yet to be determined. Because top-seeded Stevenson cannot host due to a scheduling conflict, the Garnet will serve as hosts of the semifinals and final. Those rounds will take place on Saturday and Sunday at times still to be determined.

In goal for the Garnet, recent All-Centennial selection Reba Magier made seven saves to record the clean sheet.

While the scoresheet was fairly even, the Garnet controlled play throughout and the outcome was never really in doubt.

Swarthmore took control of match early, as Sindelar netted her team-leading seventh goal of the season in the seventh minute to put the Garnet ahead 1-0. The recent First Team All-Centennial selection broke free of the defense, dribbled around an out-of-position goalkeeper and tapped in for the easy score.

Trailing by a goal, the Pacers didn't back down, putting three shots on target over the ensuing 20 minutes, but the Garnet maintained a 1-0 lead into the half.

Swarthmore erased any thoughts of a Pacer comeback just two minutes into the second half. Following a great pass through traffic near the front of net from junior Amber Famiglietti, Passanante poked in a quick shot past the 'keeper to make it a 2-0 lead.

From that point on, Marywood tried to play catch-up but to no avail, as Swarthmore finished off the 2-0 victory.

The Garnet return to action on Saturday at home in an ECAC semifinal contest against the winner of Thursday's first round match-up between No. 3 seed Wilkes and No. 6 seed Albright. The time of Saturday's semifinal has yet to be determined.