The Citadel 3, S.C. State 0

Charleston, S.C. ? The Citadel women’s soccer team picked up their first season victory with a 3-0 shutout over visiting S.C. State on Tuesday afternoon at WLI Field.  The Bulldogs received tremendous help from their freshmen as Rachelle Ornelas led The Citadel attack with two goals and Dianna Martin was responsible for the first goal of the 2006 season.  The Dogs improve to 1-5, while S.C. State falls to 2-4.

 

The Bulldogs dominated the first half of play only to come up with no score at the half, but The Citadel did not waste any time after the break as they went up 1-0 in the 46th minute.  Freshman defender Kristine Devine booted a long pass from midfield that was settled by Martin right in front of the net, allowing her to knock it in for the first score of the game. 

 

Martin then earned an assist on the second goal as she made a diagonal cross from the left that found the foot of Ornelas.  Faced with an open net, Ornelas fired it in to give the Dogs a 2-0 advantage in the 52nd minute.  The Bulldogs were not finished as Ornelas recorded her second goal of the afternoon in the 72nd minute after pulling the goalie away from the net, allowing the ball to roll in for the final, 3-0.

 

“I am very pleased for the team,” commented first-year head coach Bob Winch, earning his first victory as a Bulldog.  “We have had a hard six weeks and it is nice to finally get a good result.”

 

The Citadel controlled the ball for most of the game as they outshot S.C. State 21-6.  The Bulldogs were also awarded 11 corner kicks to S.C. State’s three.

 

“Everyone contributed and it is good to see the freshmen score,” added Winch.  “In a game like this, you tend to keep the ball, but everyone knocked it around and moved the ball well.”

 

Freshman keeper Emily Green made her first collegiate start in front of the net and notched four saves to earn the win, while S.C. State keeper Alechia Brothers recorded 11 stops of her own.

 

The Citadel will wrap-up their three-game homestand as they host The Citadel adidas Soccer Classic this weekend, Sept. 15-17.  The Dogs face Francis Marion at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 16 and then battle Youngstown State on Sunday, Sept. 17 at 11 a.m. at WLI Field.  Francis Marion and Youngstown State will play on Friday, Sept. 15 at 6 p.m. at WLI Field to kick-off the tournament.

 

#11 Wake Forest 1, UNC Greensboro 0

WINSTON-SALEM, NC ? The UNC Greensboro women’s soccer team dropped a 1-0 decision in a defensive battle to No. 11 Wake Forest in Winston-Salem on Tuesday night. Wake Forest is the fourth nationally-ranked team the Spartans have faced this season.

 

The Demon Deacons (6-1-0) cracked the scoreboard early and took a 1-0 advantage in third minute of the match. Sophomore Camelyn Dillon blasted the ball from 18 yards out to the back corner of the net for her first goal of the season past Spartan keeper Katherine Ryan.

 

Both teams were on the offensive in the first half. The Spartans and Deacons combined for a total of 17 shots but Wake would go into the break with the one goal lead.

 

The Spartans came out into the second half and put on a big defensive stand against the Deacon’s strong offensive strike. In the 60th minute, Wake’s Allie Sadow took a pass right in the kill zone and took the shot but Ryan came up with the great save to prevent the goal. Ryan recorded a total of seven saves on the night.

 

“We started out slow and played soft. We allowed an easy goal right away,”

quoted head coach Eddie Radwanski, “Our defense stepped up in the second half and played great. We faced a very good Wake Forest team and I like how we’re progressing. We’re going to keep getting better.”

 

The Spartans (1-6-0) will host two games this weekend at the UNCG Soccer Stadium. On Friday, UNCG will take on Pennsylvania at 7 pm. The Indiana Hoosiers come to Greensboro on Sunday to take on the Spartans. Kick off set for 1 pm.

 

#32 Nebraska 1, Western Carolina 0 (2OT)

Lincoln, Neb. ? Playing its third match in five days on a road trip that surpassed 1,000-miles in length, the Western Carolina Catamount women’s soccer team battled the 32nd-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers for nearly 105 minutes before falling in double overtime, 1-0, Tuesday evening at the Nebraska Soccer Field.

 

Western (2-4-0) has played five of its six matches away from the friendly confines of Cullowhee this season, while Nebraska has yet to venture outside of Lincoln, improving to 4-0-2 on the season. The loss Tuesday concluded an otherwise successful road trip for WCU as the Catamounts won two matches at the Border Shootout in El Paso, Texas over the Bobcats of Texas State and the Bearkats of Sam Houston State over the weekend.

 

The game winner for the Cornhuskers came in the second overtime session by junior Jessie Bruch on a pass from Brittany Timko, who earlier in the day was named the Big XII conference Offensive Player of the Week for last week. Timko dribbled past a Catamount defender and created space for a crossing pass. Bruch made a run into the box and corralled Timko’s cross, which had glanced off the outstretched leg of a Western Carolina defender, and put a shot into the back of the net for the game winner.

 

Bruch and teammate Aysha Jamani each finished the match with five shots apiece as Nebraska out shot Western, 18-to-6 on the day and held a 5-to-3 advantage in corner kicks.

 

The Huskers controlled play for most of the early portions of the match, holding an 8-0 edge in shots heading into intermission. However, late in the second half, the Cats mounted a serious scoring threat of their own with less than 17 minutes remaining in regulation. Following a long Western throw-in by freshman Nikki Lombardo, NU’s Shannon Dickerson and sophomore Lindsay Poehling collided while attempting to clear the ball. With both players down on the ground, sophomore Buki Baruwa launched a shot that was blocked, but freshman Shannon Schmoker found the rebound and fired a shot on goal that Nebraska sophomore goalkeeper Jamie Klages was able to stop for the Huskers and preserve the scoreless deadlock.

 

In the first overtime, each team nearly found the back of the net for the victory. The Catamounts again pressured the NU backline, and Lombardo launched a shot headed for the top of the net that Klages was able to tip off the post and out of bounds just 3:01 into the overtime period. With only 1:02 remaining in the first 10 minutes of extra time, Bruch headed a Timko free kick to the near post that Catamount senior keeper Alesha Row was able to make a diving, fingertip save to preserve the shutout and send the game to a second overtime. After finishing with three shots at the end of regulation ? all in the second half ? Western equaled the tally with three offerings in the first OT alone.

 

Row was brilliant in net for Western Carolina, making seven saves, including several outstanding stops that kept the Huskers off the board. Not to be outdone, Klages posted her second shutout of the season by denying two shots.

 

Western returns home for just the second time this season on Friday, Sept. 15, opening Southern Conference play by hosting the Wofford Terriers at 7:00 pm at the Catamount Athletic Complex as a part of Family Weekend. WCU concludes the special weekend by hosting the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs at 2:00 pm on Sunday afternoon.