Friday, August 28
Jaguars Defeat Louisiana Tech, Increase Streak to 21
TROY, Ala. – The University of South Alabama soccer team held Louisiana Tech to just two shots and a goal in the 40th minute was all the offense the Jaguars needed in a 1-0 victory over the Bulldogs Friday evening at the Troy Soccer Complex.
USA improves to 3-0 on the season and extends its regular-season unbeaten streak to 21 (20-0-1). La Tech drops to 2-1.
"I thought we played very well and very patient," USA head coach Graham Winkworth said. "Louisiana Tech set up in a very defensive 5-4-1, so there was very little space to play in the attacking third. It really wasn't a case of us looking like we were going to concede a goal, it was just a matter of if we were going to score one. Fortunately, we managed to get one in the first half and that killed the nerves.
"We were able to keep a lot of possession in the game today, and all-in-all, it was an improved performance from last weekend, but there still some ways to go before we're ready for conference."
The two shots allowed—and none on goal—are the fewest by a Jaguar opponent since giving up zero on Aug. 24, 2012 against Mississippi Valley State. The last two South Alabama opponents have combined for nine total attempts and two on target.
"Sometimes the best form of defending is to have possession of the ball," Winkworth said. "We had the ball for most of the game, but when we didn't, we dropped off very well. Hannah Godfrey, starting her first collegiate game, did extremely well back there. We've got a lot of quality in every position on the field, so it's very exciting. I don't know what the lineup will be on Sunday; we'll have a look at how practice goes tomorrow."
Sophomore Steffi Hardy (Workington, England) accounted for the lone USA scoring tally with a header off an attempted punch out by the La Tech goalkeeper. It was her fifth career goal.
"Chelsea (Followwell) put in a free kick, it went to the back post, and Steffi was on the other end of the rebound," Winkworth said. "Steffi did was she's supposed to do—she hit the target, and sometimes when there's an open net, you need to have the composure to hit the open target and Steffi did that."
South Alabama held a 15-2 advantage in shots overall, with eight finding the target. Nine different Jags attempted a shot.
"The shots were spread out because we were able to literally attack with eight or nine players because they sat so deep," Winkworth noted. "It was important that we didn't take shots from 40 yards out; we could've had 30 shots today, but we were patient and tried to get shots from good areas of the field, and that's why we managed to have a decent number on frame, rather than banging it over from distance."
The Jaguars will take a day off before taking on Tennessee-Martin Sunday at noon.
ULM Wins Second Consecutive, Blanks MVSU, 3-0
MONROE, La. – Usually when Karlea Fehr is in on the action during corner kicks, she’s upping her all-time leading assist total at ULM, but that was not the case in the 3-0 victory for the Warhawks over Mississippi Valley State on Friday at the ULM Soccer Complex.
Fehr, a senior, scored two goals for ULM (2-2) off corner kicks that she took. The first came in the 20th minute as her high kick curled above the keepers head and just under the cross bar. The second came in the 58th minute as it floated through the center and across the goal line.
The Lakewood, Colo., native moved up to No. 4 all-time in career goals with 15. She’s now second in ULM history in career points with 48 and only trails Cindy Barker (53 points).
ULM increased the lead to 3-0 in the 62nd minute on a goal by senior Mariah Mitchell. It started with a great through-ball from junior Mary Ashton Lembo which freed up Mitchell on a breakaway down the left side. Mitchell fired for the lower right corner of the net and hit her spot.
It marked the seventh career goal for Mitchell and 10th career assist for Lembo.
“I was very pleased with our team effort tonight. We were very dangerous on the attack,” said ULM head coach Roberto Mazza. “Karlea and Mariah were able to find the back of the net which will build their confidence moving forward.”
The Warhawks outshot MVSU (0-3) in the game, 20-5. They also held a big 11-1 edge in corner kicks.
Fehr registered a game-high six shots. Mitchell, Lembo, junior Jenna Pillon and freshmen Brooklyn Pritt and Cke’Lana Caesar each tallied a pair of shots.
In net, freshman Julia Idalis Gonzalez made her first career start and picked up the win. Freshman Brooke-Lynn Scroggins also played 45 minutes, as each goalkeeper made a save. Rita Gyasi (0-3) took the loss for MVSU after stopping six shots.
“Our midfielders had a solid performance. Defensively we did a great job of stopping any opportunities around the goal,” Mazza added. “Lastly, it was good to have a clean sheet from our goalkeepers, Idalis and Brooke-Lynn.”
Ernestina Abambila posted a team-high two shots for the Delta Deviletes.
The Warhawks won their third consecutive game against MVSU and improved to 5-2 all-time. ULM is now 13-0 all-time against teams from the Southwestern Athletic Conference under head coach Roberto Mazza.
The Warhawks will play their first road game of the year on Sunday when they take on Central Arkansas. ULM is 5-2-1 all-time against the Sugar Bears including a 1-0 win last season in Monroe. It will be ULM’s fifth game in 10 days.
Georgia State Improves to 3-0 on the Season
JACKSONVILLE- Callie O'Connor scored the game-winning goal against Jacksonville in a double overtime victory, with an assist from Caitlin Ray. This is O'Connor's second game-winning goal of the year.
The Panthers improve to 3-0 for the season, the best three-game start of head coach Derek Leader's career at Georgia State.
"It was a tremendous win under poor weather conditions and a tough crowd. Jacksonville was very good and I'm proud of how our girls handled the pressure," Leader said of the victory.
Troy Opens Trojan Classic with Win over UT Martin
TROY, Alabama – Troy soccer opened up the Trojan Classic on Friday night at the Troy Soccer Complex with a 2-1 victory over UT Martin. Brittany Yoder scored the first goal of her career along with the other Trojan goal.
Troy (3-1) went ahead early as they scored two goals in the first 20 minutes of the match. Chelsey Williams took a shot that was saved, but bounced back into play that Yoder ripped from six yards out and found the back of the net to give the Trojans the lead in the 13th minute. Not long after, Alissa Jones crossed the ball and found Yoder, who scored her second goal of the game, and gave Troy a 2-0 lead in the 18th minute.
"It wasn't the prettiest game, but we play games to win," Jason Hamilton said. "We had to make adjustments tactically and be a little more direct than we wanted to. There is still a lot of room for this team to grow and we're trying to get to where we want to be."
UT Martin (1-2) battled back and cut the lead in half as Sydney Norris scored in the 53rd minute. The Skyhawks wouldn't have too many more chances after that as they only got two shots off the rest of the match.
The Trojans fired 21 shots, with 11 of them landing on goal. Jones led the way with eight shots of her own. UT Martin only had six shots the entire match with three being on goal.
Troy extended its home-match win streak to 14 games, and look to push it to 15 as they face Louisiana Tech on Sunday at 3 p.m. to wrap up the Trojan Classic.
Little Rock Downs Murray State in Home Opener
LITTLE ROCK – A rowdy crowd for the Little Rock soccer team's home opener saw a spirited performance from the Trojans on Friday night as the team defeated Murray State 2-1 on a pair of skillful goals.
In front of more than 700 fans at the Coleman Sports & Recreation Complex, Caitlyn Eddy and Shannon Shields put home goals for Little Rock (2-1) to hand Murray State (1-1) its first loss of the year.
"The fans were absolutely huge tonight," Coach Adrian Blewitt said. "This is the atmosphere that we've been searching for for a while. The Maroon Mob was out behind us. … Sometimes in a tight game like this where it can go either way, the extra support acts as a 12th man."
Shields' goal proved to be the game-winner, coming in the 54th minute after Murray State tied the contest late in the first half. The Trojans were threatening in the offensive zone, and the ball was played back out to Hali Long. Far from the goal and off to the right, Long looped a long pass to the left side of the penalty box. Taking the ball off one bounce, Shields ripped it past Racers goalie Shelby Haworth.
"I saw a path, and I took the path that I needed to take," Shields said. "I had been struggling a little bit with finishing, but I think I finally found my mojo and I think the goals will just keep coming now."
The Trojans' first goal may have been even more impressive as Eddy struck a corner kick perfectly to provide a 1-0 edge in the fifth minute.
Taking the corner from the left side of the net, Eddy didn't need any help from her teammates as the curving ball floated down into the top right corner of the net without being touched.
"That never happens," Shields said. "I think you could go to a million soccer games and you'll probably see that once. That early goal boosted our confidence even more."
"It's not something that you try to do on purpose," Blewitt said. "She strikes a really, really good ball. With a corner kick you hope to put the ball in a dangerous area, and she definitely did that."
The teams played a fairly even game after that, but Murray State was able to tie things up in the 40th minute. The Trojans made a mistake in the defensive third, turning the ball over to the Racers' Marissa Burroughs. With fresh legs off the bench and no one but Little Rock goalie Sara Small in front of her, Burroughs dribbled around a diving Small and buried the ball for the tying goal.
But 15 minutes after that, Shields hit scored her goal and the Trojans held on for the victory.
"She took it first time on that half-volley," Blewitt said. "It was a great finish. She's been a really good addition for us, and she's going to score some goals."
The win was Little Rock's eighth consecutive home victory over a non-conference win and the team's third straight victory in a home opener. The Trojans are now 4-1-1 all-time against Murray State.
At halftime, Small had three saves to Haworth's one, but the Little Rock defensive line of Long, Bailey Fithian and Nora Hellmers played a strong second half and prevented the Racers from taking another shot on goal. At the end of the night, the Trojans had taken 18 shots to Murray State's seven and had a 4-2 advantage in corner kicks.
Little Rock's road only gets harder from here, as the team heads to Norman, Okla., for a battle with the Sooners on Sunday. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
Mountaineers fall to Radford
BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University women's soccer suffered a tough, 1-0, loss at the hands of Radford on Friday night at Appalachian Soccer Stadium.
"I think the game versus UNCW was a story of two halves, but tonight we put two halves together," said head coach Sarah Strickland. "A game like this will help us later down the road when need to show urgency in making chances at the end of games."
The Mountaineers (1-1-0) tallied 19 shots on the night and put 10 on goal. The Highlanders (2-1-0) only recorded six shots with two on goal, but one ended up in the back of the net.
Radford earned a corner kick in the 30th minute and played a ball into the box. The ball ricocheted around the box before Hannah Duff collected it and slotted it into the bottom right corner of the goal.
The Apps looked very dangerous throughout the game, especially in the second half with Kebrina Keys, Merlin Beckwith, and Sam Childress all have scoring opportunities. Each time the Mountaineers were denied by the Radford keeper, Katie McCormick.
"The Radford goal keeper was outstanding tonight," said Strickland. "She made three goal-line saves towards the end of the game that I thought were all going in."
The Mountaineers will have a chance at a quick rebound when they face Mercer on the road on Sunday. Game time is set for 2:00 p.m.
UCA Defeats Arkansas State, 3-2, in Double-Overtime
CONWAY, Ark. (8/28/15) – For the second straight week the Arkansas State women’s soccer team went on the road and played late into the night, but came up short in a 3-2 double overtime loss to Central Arkansas at the Bill Stephens Soccer Complex on Friday night.
The Red Wolves (1-2) and Bears were tied at 2-2 at the end of regulation and battled through a scoreless first overtime period. UCA was awarded a penalty kick on a handball that was called on Arkansas State and Chele Naudin kicked the kick in the 102nd minute to propel the Bears to a 3-2 victory.
A-State jumped out to an early two-goal lead with a pair of goals by Arianna Delli Carpini and Katey Carmichael in the first half.
Delli Carpini scored in the 29th minute on a perfectly placed header to the near post that snuck by UCA goalkeeper Anna Hughes for the match’s first goal. Delli Carpini, a freshman, received a perfectly placed cross from sophomore Tayler Carter in the opposite corner of the box and sent the headed shot into the net for her first collegiate goal.
Carmichael gave the Red Wolves a two-goal advantage in the 33rd minute on a shot from 35 yards out. Hughes whiffed on the attempt to save the shot with her foot and the ball rolled into the net for her second goal of the season.
The 2-0 lead would not last long, however, as UCA answered just seconds later on a goal by Naudin to cut the Arkansas State lead to 2-1. Naudin took a cross from Kristen Ricks and sent a shot past Kelsey Ponder for the goal.
The Bears tied the game in the 62nd minute on a goal off a set piece by Dayna Mounie to tie the game. Mounie took a free kick from Ashley Smith that deflected off of a Red Wolves’ defender and was able to put a strike on the ball to the upper right corner of the net that was just out of Ponder’s reach.
Ponder (1-0), a true freshman, made seven saves on the evening on her way to her first collegiate victory in goal. She made a huge save in the 76th minute when Kelsey Johnson appeared to have a wide open look at the goal, but Ponder was able to dive back for the ball and just get her finger tips on it to keep the score tied.
Arkansas State looked to have a prime opportunity to add to its lead in the 54th minute when senior Mykel Ward took a strike on goal that Hughes was able to handle. Loren Mitchell also had an opportunity a few minutes later after dribbling her way by several defenders, but had her cross, deflected away from the net before it could reach its target.
After UCA tied the game, Kassie Flynn looked to have scored the go-ahead goal in the 70th minute. Flynn was able to control a deflected corner kick, and send it by Hughes in net, but a UCA defender was able to get a foot on the ball before it crossed the endline to keep the game tied at 2-2.
Ward led A-State with two shots on goal, while as a team the Red Wolves totaled five shots on target.
The team returns home Sunday to host Murray State at the A-State Soccer Park at 1 p.m. Admission to the game is free.
Eagles Fall to Coastal Carolina, 2-1
CONWAY, S.C. - The Georgia Southern women's soccer team dropped a hard-fought 2-1 contest to Coastal Carolina Friday night at the CCU Soccer Field at the TD Sports Complex.
"Coastal Carolina came out strong and played with determination tonight," said Head Coach Brian Dunleavy. "We were out-worked and out-hustled in every aspect of the game. We failed to step up to match their intensity and work rate. Ultimately, it costs us a result. We will regroup and refocus as we have a big test this Sunday at Charlotte."
Neither team was able to mount much of an attack in the first half as the two teams battled to a scoreless stanza. In the second frame, Coastal jumped on the board quickly with a goal just over five minutes in from Darbie Kelley.
Southern tied the match up midway through the second half when Nora El-Shami blasted a free kick from just outside the 18-yard box through the wall and into the back of the net in the 66th minute of play. The Chanticleers (2-1-0) took the lead for good in the 75th minute when Dani Famili chipped the ball past Eagle goalie Emily Flinn.
The Eagles tried to mount a rally late, but couldn't get the equalizer, falling to 0-2-1 on the young season.
Georgia Southern will now head to the Queen City to take on Charlotte Sunday at Transamerica Field. Match time is set for 2 p.m. It will be the first meeting on the pitch between the Eagles and 49ers.
Ole Miss Trumps Cajuns, 3-1
OXFORD, Miss. – In the first road match of the season, the Ragin' Cajuns soccer team pushed the Ole Miss Rebels to the limit, but fell by a 3-1 count at the Ole Miss Soccer Complex on Friday evening.
Junior midfielder Kimberly Grasso tallied her second goal of the season in the losing effort, while freshman goalkeeper Cosette Morche stopped a season-high nine shots, including four in the first 19-plus minutes.
After seven unsuccessful shot attempts, Ole Miss came up with the match's first goal in the 39th minute off the foot of junior Addie Forbus.
The Cajuns were held to two shot attempts in the opening half (Cassandra Reyes, Yazmin Montoya) and totaled six for the entire match. Grasso was the only Cajun to record multiple shot attempts (2).
In the second period, the Rebels wasted little time getting back on the scoreboard, as Cece Kizer tallied her second score of the 2015 campaign.
Thirty seconds after sophomore Ashleigh Cade had her shot attempt blocked, Grasso cut the deficit in half in the 58th minute on a free kick from 20 yards away.
In minute No. 64, the Rebels' Gretchen Harknett was set up on a pass from Jennifer Miller and finished the scoring play to provide Ole Miss with a 3-1 advantage.
The loss dropped Louisiana's all-time record against Ole Miss to 0-4-0. All four defeats have come in Oxford, Miss.
"We came out of the box a little slow, however we finished really strong which I was really proud of," head coach Scot Wieland said. "In the first half we weren't our best but we played a heck of a lot better in the second half. [Kimberly] Grasso had a gorgeous goal off of a set piece. I was really happy with how we progressed on the road against a senior-stacked SEC team. I was very proud of our group."
The Cajuns will look to bounce back this Sunday, August 30 for a 1 p.m. matchup at Southern Miss in Hattiesburg, Miss.
Bobcats Fall to McNeese State
SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State soccer team dropped its first contest of the 2015 season Friday night to McNeese State by a 1-0 margin. The Cowgirls capitalized early on the Bobcats who then struggled the rest of the evening to put the pieces together to get a goal of their own.
The Bobcats (1-1-0) prime look at goal came in the final moments of the match when a ball served across the box deflected off Landry Lowe toward goal and was ultimately saved by the McNeese State goalie.
Texas State outshot the Cowgirls, 16-6, including 10 launched in the first half. Both defenses locked down in the second half as the teams combined for seven total shots. The Bobcats also recorded six corner kicks compared to just three by McNeese State.
Maddie Nichols led the Bobcats alongside senior Lynsey Curry with five shots a piece. Senior goalkeeper Caitlynn Rinehart finished the match with two saves.
Texas State will remain home Sunday with a 1 p.m. match-up against UTEP. For more information on the Texas State soccer team, follow along on Facebook (Texas State Soccer), Twitter (@TxStateSoccer), and online at www.txstatebobcats.com.