Friday, September 1
Strong Second Half Carries Cajuns Past Lamar, 4-1
LAFAYETTE – Whitney Taggart broke a 1-1 tie in the 54th minute with a header and the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns soccer team erupted for three goals in the second half to defeat Lamar, 4-1, on Friday at the Ragin' Cajuns Soccer/Track Facility.
Mackenzie Higgins added a pair of goals while Carly Ellender added an unassisted goal as Louisiana (2-3) recorded 16 of its 27 shots in the second half to pull away from Lamar (0-5).
"We weren't playing as we were capable in the first half," head coach Scot Wieland said. "We were playing the ball in the middle and losing possession. We were playing soft and that's why it was a 1-1 game."
Lamar struck first in the sixth minute as M.J. Eckart scored on a header past goalie Mackenzie Lee off an assist from Angelica Hernandez.
Less than three minutes later, Louisiana answered as Higgins scored her fourth goal of the season past Lamar goalkeeper Rachel Gries.
"We need to play a 90-minute game," Wieland said. "That's the adjustment that we have to continue to make. Playing 45 minutes isn't going to get it done when we get to conference."
Taggart gave Louisiana a 2-1 lead after scoring her first goal of the season off a direct kick by Ashleigh Cade. The Ragin' Cajuns increased their lead to 3-1 in the 73rd minute when Ellender collected a rebound off Gries and fired into the right corner of the goal for her second goal of the season.
"The first half the girls didn't figure out how to play according to what Lamar was giving us," Wieland said. "The second half, they figured it out."
Higgins added her Sun Belt-leading fifth goal of the season in the 81st minute when she beat Gries to the left corner on a penalty kick.
Lee recorded a pair of saves for Louisiana, which improved to 4-0 all-time against Lamar. Gries recorded nine saves for the Cardinals, who will play at Southern on Sunday.
Louisiana returns to action on Sunday when it plays host to Southeastern Louisiana in a 6 p.m. contest at the Ragin' Cajuns Soccer/Track Facility.
WINTERS SCORES GAME-WINNER FOR PANTHERS
ATLANTA- The Georgia State women’s soccer team picked up its second win of the season with a 1-0 victory over Alabama A&M on Friday night at the GSU Soccer Complex. Junior Kenzie Winters scored the game-winner, her first career goal.
The Panthers improved to 2-1-2 on the season while the Bulldogs fell to 0-5.
GSU came out strong defensively, holding Alabama A&M to just three shots in the first half. Junior Brie Haynes had two key saves in the opening period, with a total of three saves during the game.
Winters scored the lone goal of the game at the 22minute mark, her first career goal. She was unassisted on the goal.
The Panthers outshot the Bulldogs 12-9, with eight shots coming in the first half. Senior Alexis Thomas led the team in shots with three and one on target.
Georgia State will be back on the field at Western Kentucky on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m., in Bowling Green, Ky. Live stats will be available at GeorgiaStateSports.com.
ULM's Late Goal Downs Nicholls State 1-0 On Friday
Monroe, La. – The ULM soccer team used a goal by Cke’Lana Caesar in the 72nd minute and held on late for the win 1-0 over Nicholls State Friday afternoon. The goal for Caesar was her team-leading third of the season.
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Trojans Suffer Tight 1-0 Loss at No. 14 Texas A&M
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Little Rock soccer team's defense held strong for the entire first half, but No. 14 Texas A&M broke a scoreless tie early in the second half for a 1-0 victory at Ellis Field on Friday night.
After being shut out for the entire first half, Texas A&M got its goal four minutes into the second half off the foot of Emily Bates. Bates had the ball at the right edge of the penalty area and dribbled past two Trojan defenders to the top of the box. Once there, she ripped a curving shot into the left corner over Little Rock goalkeeper Sara Small for the 1-0 lead in the 49th minute.
The Trojans' best opportunity to score came in the 53rd minute off the foot of Caitlyn Eddy. The sophomore ripped a shot from distance toward the top of the goal, and Texas A&M keeper Danielle Rice had to make a leaping attempt at the ball. Rice managed to get just enough of the ball to deflect it up, onto the crossbar and away from danger.
Sara Small had another strong night in net, allowing just the one Aggies goal while making five saves.
Little Rock is back home on Friday night when it hosts Mississippi Valley State at 7 p.m. at the Coleman Sports & Recreation Complex. The Trojans will be honoring their seniors during the game as part of the annual Senior Night tradition.
ACCIDENTAL GOAL GIVES MISSISSIPPI STATE DOUBLE OVERTIME WIN OVER JAGUAR SOCCER
MOBILE, Ala. – An attempted University of South Alabama clearance bounced off a Mississippi State soccer player and into the net to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 double-overtime victory Friday night at The Cage.
The loss drops the Jaguars to 2-2-1 on the year. All three home games have gone into double overtime, but the Jags have yet to pick up a win (0-2-1). The Bulldogs improve to 3-2.
"It was a hard-fought game, and I say this every week at home right now, but the girls were absolutely fantastic. I can't praise them enough," USA head coach Graham Winkworth said. "We've been phenomenal at home so far this season and haven't picked up a result. We outshot them 26-13 and the keeper pulled off some fantastic saves. We had some good opportunities to score. I thought we were going to be given another penalty kick, but we didn't. It wasn't to be.
"I couldn't be prouder of the girls' efforts."
The winning tally came at the 101:32 mark after a Mississippi State cross got loose in the penalty area. As a South Alabama defender tried to clear the ball from inside the six-yard box, it went straight into the body of the MSU attacker and into the open net.
"Lady luck hasn't gone in our direction, whether it's the post or goals that go in (off another player)," Winkworth said. "The girl was in the right place at the right time, so I don't know that I want to call it fluky, but she was in the right place at the right time and all credit to them.
"If I look at the number of passes that were completed in this game, I thought we completely outplayed them, but at the end of the day, we didn't get the right result. If we play like this for the remainder of the season, week in and week out, it's going to be very difficult for teams to play with us on a regular basis."
After a scoreless first half, it took less than nine minutes for the Jaguars to break the tie. Junior Rio Hardy (Workington, England) recorded her team-leading third goal of the season after redirecting a free kick from sophomore Jemma Purfield (Cottingham, England).
Mississippi State equalized at the 66:09 mark on a solo effort from Kennadi Carbin. Carbin gained control just outside the attacking third, dribbled through the middle of the field before cutting across the top of the 18-yard box and placing her shot in the right side of the net.
The Jaguars looked to have won it with just over five minutes left in regulation, but MSU goalkeeper Tanya de Souza saved a USA penalty kick.
South Alabama dominated the first overtime period, outshooting Mississippi State 7-0, including four on net, with three corner kicks, but was unable to score. The Jags held a 26-13 advantage in shots overall, and an 11-6 edge on target.
"It was one-way traffic, but soccer's a funny old game and that's just the way it is," Winkworth said. "I'm really proud of the girls' efforts, it's just we have to pick them up now because we have some team from Tallahassee coming in on Monday."
De Souza made nine saves for the Bulldogs, while senior Sarah Hay (Waxahatchie, Texas) had four stops for the Jaguars.
South Alabama returns to the pitch Monday afternoon, hosting No. 1 Florida State at 5 p.m.
Cline’s Two Goals Not Enough in Loss to Liberty
LYNCHBURG, Va. — Appalachian State University women’s soccer fell just short in a 3-2 shootout against Liberty on Friday afternoon despite two goals from senior Jane Cline (Cornelius, N.C./Charlotte Catholic).
“Liberty is a great program that has consistently been to the NCAA tournament and competes for the Big South Championship,” head coach Sarah Strickland said. “We knew it would be a battle and we came out flying. It was a great match and we saw some incredible moments from Jane Cline, Lindsey Tully and Morgan Mosack. We will definitely learn from it and prepare for Sunday against Maryland.”
The Mountaineers (3-2) came out of the gate fast, looking to put the Lady Flames (1-3) on their heels early. Cline did just that in the fourth minute when Jenn Bass (Burlington, N.C./Williams (Clemson)) lofted the ball high over the defense into the box for Cline to drive home. Appalachian continued to be the aggressive in the first half, having Cline score her second goal in the 19th minute after she picked up a loose ball at the top of the key and buried the ball into the left corner of the net to go up 2-0.
With the two goals on Friday, Cline moves to six all-time in career goals (19). It’s the sixth time in her career that she’s had a multi-goal effort.
Liberty would finally break the seal on the net in the 31st minute when Sierra Lam found Isabella Habuda at the top of the box, where she fired a rocket into the right side. The Lady Flames would equalize the match at 2-2 in the 39th minute when Abigail Persson picked up a loose ball at the top of the key and launched one into the bottom-left corner.
After an high-scoring first half, the second half would largely be more defensive as neither team wanted to give an inch.
The Lady Flames would finally go up on the eventual game-winner in the 55th minute when Persson found Sami Santos off a corner for the goal to make it 3-2.
Appalachian had several opportunities, but Liberty’s goalkeeper Holly Van Noord made tough saves to keep them at bay. She had eight saves on the day.
Leading the Apps in shots on goal was Cline who finished with four while Tully (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Catholic), Bass, Jackie Nieradka (Kernersville, N.C./East Forsyth), Emmily Cowie (Davidson, N.C./W.A. Hough), Mosack (Charlotte, N.C./Providence Day School) and Sharon Osterbind (Jacksonville, Ala./Jacksonville (UAB)) had one shot on goal each.
In the net for the Mountaineers was Sam Steyl (Charlotte, N.C./Ardrey Kell). Steyl tied a career high save effort with seven in 90 minutes.
The Mountaineers will now return home to play Big Ten power Maryland on Sunday afternoon. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. at the Appalachian Soccer Stadium at the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex.
Troy Soccer Falls at UT Martin
MARTIN, Tennessee – UT Martin scored a pair of late goals to defeat the Troy soccer team, 2-1, at Skyhawk Field on Friday.
The Trojans (4-2) took the lead early in the second half courtesy of an own goal by UT Martin. Troy conceded goals in the 84th and 88th minutes of the contest.
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
Despite being gifted a goal in the second half, Troy had plenty of opportunities to score. In the 43rd minute, Abby Reynolds fired a shot that hit the crossbar, while Maddie Brune had a headed effort saved in the 18th minute.
QUOTABLE
"It was a very disappointing loss and performance from our team," head coach Jason Hamilton said.
"UT Martin out worked us and our decision making didn't give us much of a chance to win. We wasted a lot of opportunities in this game and when you don't put the game away, you give the other team a chance."
UP NEXT
Troy travels to Oxford, Miss., to battle Ole Miss at 7 p.m. on Sunday; the game will be broadcast on ESPN3. The Rebels (3-2) recently dropped from the top 25, but are still receiving votes. The Trojans are 0-1 against the SEC-foe all-time.
NOTEWORTHY
• The loss snaps Troy's three-game winning streak.
• The Trojans entered the game second in the conference with 26 corners kicks (5.2/gm) and produced eight more on Friday.
• Friday marks the first time Troy has lost a game when leading in the 80th minute or later since Sept. 14, 2007 when the Trojans allowed an 87th minute equalizer to Central Arkansas, then surrendered the game-winner in overtime.
Texas State Drops Heartbreaker at New Mexico State
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The Texas State women's soccer team dominated most of the game Friday afternoon at the NMSU Soccer Athletic Complex. However, New Mexico State found the back of the net just over a minute into the second overtime period to defeat the Bobcats 1-0.
Texas State falls to 2-2-1 on the season while the Aggies are now 1-4-0 on the year.
Neither team showed much offensively in the first half. Only four shots were taken between the squads with three coming off the foot of a Bobcat.
In the second half, Texas State attempted 12 shots but were only able to place two of them on frame. NMSU was able to get four shots off, with the two on goal being saved by Kathryn Budde.
Rachel Grout had an opportunity in the 95th minute to end the contest but were shot was stopped by the Aggies' goalkeeper.
The game ended 61 seconds into the second overtime period when NMSU's Aileen Galicia scored off a rebound.
Brooke Ramsey led all players with a career-high five shots. Both Clarissa Leon and Grout had three shots in the game. Also concluding the contest with multiple shot attempts were Lauren Prater and Alyssa Phelan.
In her second consecutive start between the posts, Budde made two saves on the day.
Next for the Bobcats is a road match at UTEP on Sunday. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. CDT with live stats and video stream available.