Furman 1, Wofford 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Wofford women’s soccer team had a 10-4 edge on shots over Furman, however the Terriers were defeated 1-0 by the Paladins on Thursday night at Snyder Field. The loss ended the season for the Terriers.
With the loss, Wofford falls to 3-11-5 on the season and 2-7-2 in the Southern Conference. Furman improved to 13-6-1 overall and 7-4 in conference play. Wofford was led by Sydney Reed with three shots, while goalie Katie McChesney made two saves. Martha Hall scored the lone goal for the Paladins.
For the first ten minutes of the game, the Terriers controlled play and had three shots on goal. Included in the shots was a header by Monica Ploetzke that was saved by Jessica Smith. The Paladins had their only shot on goal in the first half at the 21:34 mark, which was saved by McChesney.
With ten minutes remaining in the first half, Wofford had a shot by Sydney Reed that was saved and then a shot by Rachael Blackburn from the top of the box that went high. At the half, Wofford had a seven to one lead on shots.
The sun set for the second half, putting a fall chill in the air. The Terriers came out strong again, with a shot by Cassie Rex that went side of the net seven minutes into the half. Furman was able to break the scoreless tie with a cross by Rachel Fry into the box, which Martha Hall placed in the left corner of the net at 65:31.
Wofford’s best chance in the second half was at 80:33 when a shot by Maggie McLaughlin from the 15 yards to the left of the goal somehow was able to hit both the crossbar and the post before the ball was saved by Furman. The Terriers had several runs late in the game, but were unable to generate strong scoring chances.
For the Terriers, goalie Katie McChesney had two saves on the night, while Furman keeper Jessica Smith made four saves in the shutout. Wofford committed eight fouls, while Furman had seven in the contest. Furman had a 3-1 edge on corner kicks.
Prior to the game, the Terriers recognized seniors Mary Rea and Claire Burke in their final home contest at Snyder Field.
Davidson 2, Georgia Southern 1 (OT)
STATESBORO, Ga. - Sophomore Callan Elswick picked up her first two career collegiate assists, including one on junior Suzanne Sittko's game-winning strike in overtime to help the Davidson women's soccer team close out the regular season with a 2-1 triumph over Georgia Southern on Thursday afternoon in Southern Conference action.
With the road win, Davidson picked up its 10th victory of the season to improve to 10-5-3 overall, and finished league play at 8-3-0. The 10 wins mark the fifth straight season the Wildcats have hit double digits in the victory column, all coming under head coach Greg Ashton. They also matched last year's eight wins in league play as the Cats secured the fourth seed in the upcoming Southern Conference Tournament and will host a first-round game.
The Eagles closed out the year 4-11-3, and 2-8-1 in SoCon games. Finishing 10th in the conference, GSU did not qualify for the eight-team tournament.
The game-winning score off the foot of Sittko came at the 97:47 mark in the first overtime. She took a pass from Elswick on the far side and a knocked a shot into the right side of the net for the game-winner. Sittko's game-winner was her second of the year, pushing her career total to eight in three years.
Both teams came charging out of the gates, hitting a goal apiece in the first 10 minutes of the contest. Davidson struck first, scoring in the fourth minute of play. Sophomore Katharine Laco headed it the first goal off of a long cross from Elswick from the far right side of the field.
GSU hit the equalizer when Ashley Toussaint scored her 13th goal of the season in the ninth minute. Holli Finneren passed the ball to Toussaint, who lobbed it over the head of freshman goalkeeper Christy Carry to tie things up at 1-1.
Davidson dominated in the shots department, 22-5, with 12 of the shots coming in the second half. Junior Kyri Bye-Nagel got off a team-high seven shots, placing three of them on goal, while four other Wildcats had two or more shots for the game.
Carry picked up three saves in the winning effort, while the Eagles' goalkeeper, Lauren Santos, recorded seven stops.
The corner count was 9-2 in favor of the Wildcats, and the foul count was tied at six.
UNC Greensboro 2, Elon 0
ELON, N.C. - The UNC Greensboro Spartans netted a goal in each half to defeat the Elon Phoenix by a 2-0 margin in Southern Conference women's soccer action from Rudd Field on Thursday night. The match was the regular season finale for both squads who will advance into the 2008 SoCon Tournament which begins on Sunday. The Spartans, undefeated in their last 31 league contests, are now 15-4-1 overall and 10-0-1 on the year. The Phoenix now sits at 8-8-2, 4-6-1.
UNCG got on the board just over 20 minutes into the game when Leigh Riordon took a corner that was deflected by Nicole Danford. Lauren Lopez found the ball and knocked home her third goal of the season.
Both teams had other scoring opportunities in the first 45 minutes but were unable to capitalize.
With the score still at 1-0, Katelynn Donovan was able to control a loose ball in the box and bang home an insurance goal, her 12th marker of the season, at 72:22.
Elon's keepers Sydney Little and Lizz Johnson split the 90 minutes evenly. Little made two saves in the first half while Johnson stopped one shot in the second.
UNCG's Kelsey Kearney made two save while recording her ninth shutout of the year.
The Spartans took 13 total shots, putting five on frame, while the Phoenix got off six shots, two of which were on goal.
Samford 4, Chattanooga 2
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. --- The Samford University soccer team extended its winning streak to five-consecutive games Thursday and remained undefeated at home this season as the Bulldogs recorded a 4-2 victory against the Chattanooga Lady Mocs at Bulldog Field.
With the win, Samford (9-8-2, 8-1-2 Southern Conference) concluded its regular season with a 5-0-1 record at home. The Bulldogs also extended their undefeated conference mark in regular-season play to 18-straight games, a school record.
Samford’s four-goal output tied its largest tally of the 2008 season. Earlier this year, the Bulldogs earned a similar scoring performance in a 4-0 victory against The Citadel.
Thursday night, Samford received goals from Sarah Wilkinson, Amber Cress, Caroline Baxter and Natalie Fleming. Wilkinson, the reigning SoCon Player of the Week, and Cress both scored their fifth goals of the season, while Fleming notched the game-winner during the 51st minute of play.
With the loss, Chattanooga (5-14-1, 2-9 SoCon) concluded its season.
Western Carolina 3, Appalachian State 2
BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University women's soccer got off to an impressive start Thursday evening, but its early lead wasn't enough, as the Mountaineers dropped a close match to Western Carolina, falling 3-2. With the loss ASU falls to 7-9-2 on the season and 3-7-1 in the SoCon , while WCU improves to 12-7 and 9-2 in conference play. Despite the loss, Appalachian still clinches a spot in the Southern Conference tournament, as Wofford lost to Furman earlier in the evening.
The Mountaineers had a great start in the first half, as just 25 seconds in Paige Morrow scored her first goal of the season off a pass from Katy Dodd. Morrow took the shot from the right corner of the 18 yard box and the ball slid past the WCU goalkeeper to give Appalachian the early 1-0 lead.
Western's offense picked up the pace, but the Appalachian's backline remained strong, not allowing WCU to get on the board.
ASU looked like it had its second goal of the evening when Brooke Humphrey hit the ball to Jordan Horvath and Horvath had what seemed like a breakaway, but took one too many touches and Caitlin Williams was able to make the save. Caroline Lowe also had a great chance to score for the Apps, with a little less than 17 minutes remaining in the first half, when she drilled a shot outside the 18 yard box that hit the cross bar.
Appalachian took the 1-0 advantage into halftime.
The Catamounts opened up the second half strong, as Bri Cunningham was able to convert a pass deflection off an ASU defender into a goal in the 47th minute to tie the match at one apiece.
WCU was able to score again in the 67th minute when Kellie Oberholtzer finished off a free kick by Jenny Matteson that slipped through Caroline Clarke's hands. The goal put Western up 2-1.
The Mountaineers answered in the 74th minute, when Casey Cleary scored her fifth goal of the season off a free kick that sailed over the goalkeeper's head.
Both teams battled until the 78th minute when Cunningham scored her second goal of the night off an assist from Rachael Shomper. Cunningham's final goal was enough, as ASU was unable to convert any of the rest of their opportunities into goals, and ended up falling 3-2.
Offensivley, ASU outshot Western seven to six, while WCU had a major advantage in corner kicks, earning five to the Apps zero.
In goal, both Clarke and Emma White (Arden, N.C./TC Roberson) saw action, while Williams played the entire match for the Catamounts, recording three saves.
College of Charleston 9, The Citadel 0
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. --- The College of Charleston women's soccer team ended Southern Conference regular season play with a dominating 9-0 win over cross-town rival The Citadel on Thursday night at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium.
With the win, the Cougars end the 2008 regular season with a 12-5-3, 5-4-2 in the Southern Conference. The Citadel ends their season with a 3-14-1 mark, 1-10-0 in the SoCon.
Before the match, the Cougars honored their 2008 season class, which included Megan Manthey, Erin Smith, Danielle Jordan, Katie Browne and Gia D'Agostino.
In the first half, the Cougars got on the board early, as Manthey netted her 13th goal of the season in the ninth minute. She would add her second goal of the night in the 24th minute off an assist from teammate Morgan Benz to score her Southern Conference leading 14th goal of the season and make the score 2-0.
A little over three minutes later, Chrissy Caruso socre her second goal of the season off a free kick in the 27th minute. The Cougars would then end the period scoring goals within minutes of each other, as Annie Pease scored unassisted in the 42nd minute, and then Christian Patton scored in the 43rd minute off a Manthey assist. The scores made the match 5-0 going into the half.
In the second half, the scoring barrage continued, as Amanda Raymond made the game 6-0 with her third goal of the season off a Caruso assist in the 46th minute. In the 48th minute, Jordan scored her first goal of the season unassisted to make the score 7-0.
In the 56th minute, Hannah Gmerek scored to make the score 8-0, then Hope Atkinson rounded out the scoring on the night with a goal in the 63rd minute. Kerry Broderick was credited with an assist on the play.
At the end of the night, the Cougars outshot the Bulldogs 17-3, as Smith earned her ninth shutout win of the season after making three saves in between the pipes for Charleston.