Samford 1, The Citadel 0
CHARLESTON, S.C. --- The Samford soccer team used a key second-half goal from sophomore Sarah Wilkinson to defeat The Citadel Bulldogs 1-0 on Friday in the Southern Conference opener for both teams. With the victory, Samford extended its winning streak to six-consecutive matches and remained undefeated this season.
"It was good for us to get a win, but I don't think we played that sharp today," said Samford head coach Todd Yelton. "The Citadel is a tough, scrappy team and they played their hearts out. I think that they are much improved this season and (head coach) Bob (Winch) does an outstanding job with them. It was a conference win for us and it's always good to start league play 1-0."
Samford (6-0-1, 1-0 SoCon) posted its seventh-consecutive shutout Friday and the Bulldogs have not allowed a goal this season. In seven matches, Samford has outscored its opposition by a total of 10-0.
Sophomore goalkeeper Alyssa Whitehead earned her sixth complete-game shutout. So far this year, the Bulldogs' 6-foot-3 native of Hattiesburg, Miss., has compiled 25 saves. Whitehead has not allowed a goal in 640 minutes of action this season.
Wilkinson scored Samford's game-winning goal during the 56th minute of play. The score was her team-leading fourth of the season. Wilkinson also leads the Bulldogs with three game-winning goals this year. Senior Amber Cress was credited with an assist on the play.
With the loss, The Citadel (3-6, 0-1 SoCon) had its losing streak extended to three-consecutive matches. Prior to Friday's defeat, the Bulldogs suffered back-to-back setbacks against Florida Gulf Coast 2-1 and North Florida 4-2. The Citadel is now 0-2 all-time against Samford.
Samford outshot The Citadel 10-8 on Friday, while the fouls were even at 14-14. The Citadel registered three corner kicks, compared to only one for Samford.
Appalachian State 3, Georgia Southern 0
BOONE, N.C. - Caroline Lowe scored in the third minute as Appalachian State women's soccer team defeated the Georgia Southern Eagles, 3-0 on a foggy night at Appalachian Soccer Stadium.
On a night where it was difficult for the fans to see from the stands, Lowe got the scoring started early for Appalachian (4-4-1, 1-0), taking a pass from Stephanie Balzano and lifting it over the goalkeeper's head from 15 yards out.
The Mountaineers dominated possession all night, outshooting the Eagles (0-8, 0-1) 8-1 in the first half and 17-3 for the night.
Katy Dodd gave the Apps a two-goal lead when she made a nice move around a defender and took a shot from the right side past Lauren Santos for her second goal of the year.
Just six minutes later, Jennifer MacNeill made a cross pass from the right side to a streaking Dodd who put it past Santos for her third goal of the year.
Dodd led the ASU potent offensive attack with eight shots, while Holly Dyer made the only shot on goal for GSU.
Caroline Clarke made one save for her fourth shutout of the season while Santos made six saves for Georgia Southern.
College of Charleston 1, Chattanooga 0
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - A goal in the 57th minute by freshman Alyssa Bearden was the difference, as the College of Charleston women's soccer team defeated Chattanooga 1-0 on Friday evening at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium. The match was the Southern Conference season opener for both teams.
With the win, the Cougars improved to 5-3-1 on the year, 1-0 in the Southern Conference, while Chattanooga fell to 5-1, 0-1 in the SoCon with the loss. Charleston returns to the pitch on Sunday, Sept. 27 when they host Samford beginning at 1 p.m.
In the first half, both the Cougars and the Lady Mocs had chances to score, with Chattanooga outshooting Charleston 7-4. Both teams, however, failed to score in the first 45 minutes of action, as the match went into the half in a scoreless tie.
In the second half, both teams went back and forth with scoring chances in the first 11 minutes of the half. Late in the 57th minute, Bearden stole a pass from a Chattanooga defender, squared to the goal and fired a shot from 25 yards out that went over the outstretched arms of Lady Moc goalie Taylor Davidson for the score.
The goal was unassisted and the second for Bearden in as many games, as she registered the first score of her collegiate career in Tuesday's 3-0 win over Charleston Southern.
From there, the Cougar defense took control of the match. Over the last 30 minutes, Charleston goalie Sarah Wiggers made save after save to preserve a shutout victory, her third in as many games.
Overall, the Cougars outshot the Lady Mocs 10-9 and held a 7-3 advantage in corner kicks. Both Davidson of Chattanooga and Wiggers of Charleston made five saves on the night in goal.
UNC Greensboro 4, Furman 0
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- UNC Greensboro extended its Southern Conference regular season unbeaten streak to 32 matches with a 4-0 victory over Furman in the SoCon season opener for both teams Friday evening at UNCG Soccer Stadium.
Kristin Player received a pass from Lauren Lopez and chipped a shot over Paladin keeper Jessica Smith from 20 yards in the 38th minute to put the Spartans on the board. Less than five minutes later, Cat Barnekow hammered in a loose ball inside the box to boost the Spartans' lead to 2-0 at 42:02.
After intermission, Tabitha Padgett tallied her third goal of the season on assists from Player and Jen Rincon to increase the lead to 3-0 and Kelly Attayek capped the scoring with her first tally of the season on assists from Katie Durst and Lauren Hein at 87:42.
The Spartans (5-4-0, 1-0) dominated offensively outshooting Furman 18-8. UNCG attempted 11 shots on goals while yielding just four to the Paladins. Kelsey Kearney recorded the shutout in goal with four saves. Smith took the loss for Furman despite stopping six shots.
Furman, 6-2 overall and 0-1 in the league, continues SoCon play when it travels to Elon on Sunday Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. The Spartans host Wofford at 2 p.m.
Western Carolina 2, Davidson 0
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - The Catamount women's soccer team scored on a pair of unassisted goals in the 2-0 shutout of Davidson in front of 415 fans at the Catamount Athletic Complex on Friday evening.
The victory gave Western Carolina (4-3-2, 1-0-0 SoCon) their sixth consecutive win at home, dating back to last season. The win was also the first time in school history that the Catamounts had won back-to-back Southern Conference season openers. Last year, WCU dominated The Citadel in a 6-0 contest.
The loss was the first time Davidson (3-7-0, 0-1-0, SoCon) had been shut out by the Catamounts since a 2-0 victory at the Catamount Athletic Complex in 2005.
Senior's Bri Cunningham and Jenny Matteson tallied their first goals of the season on a wet surface.
The first half was a back and forth contest, as Davidson narrowly held the shot advantage after one half of play, 5-4. Both of the Catamounts goals came in the second half after WCU made a strong offensive push in the first 11 minutes.
Cunningham used her athletic skills from 20 yards out to place a perfect spin on the ball to hit the top right cross bar before falling into the net for the unassisted tally at the 49th minute. The goal was Cunnigham's 13th career-goal which ties her for 10th with Morgan Foresman (1999-2002) on the WCU all-time career ledger.
Roughly six minutes later, Matteson, a defender from Cinnaminson, N.J., scored her third career goal after launching the spinning ball from 50 yards away. The ball skipped out of Davidson goalkeeper, Jessie Baxa's hands before it landed in between the pipes.
Davidson played a strong possession-style pace of game, but the Catamounts used a stout defensive effort.
Western Carolina junior goalkeeper Caitlin Williams extended her shutout streak to a season-high 297 minutes, while also tying Alesha Row (2003-2006) for number one in the WCU all-time career shutouts list. Williams, a Liberty S.C. native, notched eight saves Friday evening to record her 18th shutout.
Elon 2, Wofford 1
ELON, N.C. - The Elon women's soccer team scored two goals in a span of four minutes in the second half to overcome a one-goal deficit and defeat the Wofford Terriers, 2-1, in the Southern Conference opener at Rudd Field on Friday night. Senior Molly Calpin's goal in the 77th minute proved the game-winner as Elon won a SoCon opener for the first time since joining the league and improved to 5-2-1, 1-0-0 on the season. With the loss, Wofford dropped to 1-8-0, 0-1-0 on the year.
After a slow first half that featured only three total shots, Elon put early pressure on the visitors to open the final period. Junior Brittany Hallberg found senior Alix Heinicke on the left side of the field, but Heinicke's attempt sailed high. Shortly after, freshman Caroline McKinley fed Calpin who fired a quick shot right into the hands of Terrier keeper Erika Christensen.
Despite these scoring chances by the Phoenix, it was Wofford who got on the board first. Anne Phillips rocketed a shot from the right side at Elon goalie Sydney Little. Little blocked the shot but was unable to cover the ball, leaving it free for Maggie McLaughlin to put Wofford on top with the rebound goal at the 65:11 mark.
Elon continued to attack and bounced back to tie the score in the 73rd minute. Rookie Liz Palmer notched her third assist of the season after her corner kick found the head of McKinley for the equalizer.
With renewed confidence, the Phoenix took little time getting the go-ahead goal. At 76:21, freshman Ceci Jensen came down the middle of the field and sent a ball to the right side. Calpin took the pass and converted a shot from about 15 yards out to put Elon on top.
The Phoenix defense held Wofford in check for the remainder of the half. The Terriers did not tally another shot as Elon held on for the victory. The shot tally was in Elon's favor with a 7-3 advantage. Both teams earned five corner kicks.