Samford 5, The Citadel 0
CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Samford University soccer team extended its winning streak to four consecutive matches Friday as the Bulldogs breezed to a 5-0 Southern Conference road victory against The Citadel Bulldogs at Summerall Field.
With the win, defending SoCon champion Samford (8-4, 3-0 SoCon) remained undefeated in conference matches this season and tallied its third straight shutout victory. Since opening league play last week, the Bulldogs have rattled off consecutive triumphs against Furman, 2-0, Wofford, 1-0, and The Citadel (1-11, 0-2 SoCon).
Five different players scored goals for Samford on Friday as the Bulldogs equaled their highest score total of the season.
Junior Malcanisha Kelley opened the scoring with the game-winning goal in the 14th minute, while Taylor Borman, Kinsey Sessions, Hallie Georgi and Virginia McNeill also added scores.
Kelley’s goal was her team-leading eighth of the 2015 campaign. She moved into a tie for third place on the school’s all-time goals-scored list with 23.
In the 23rd minute of action, Borman increased Samford’s lead to 2-0 by scoring her third goal of the season. Borman also played a key role in Samford’s third goal of the match, as she set up a score for Sessions, her first of the 2015 season. In the 32nd minute, Sessions’ goal gave the Bulldogs a commanding 3-0 lead over the Cadets heading into halftime.
The second half proved to be similar to the opening 45 minutes of action as Samford’s Georgi and McNeill both tacked on goals en route to the Bulldogs’ decisive 5-0 victory. Georgi’s goal was her fifth of the season, while McNeill’s score was her first.
Samford’s Katie Peters earned the complete-game shutout in goal for the Bulldogs and upped her record on the season to 6-3. Peters boasts a 0.94 goals-against average in 2015 and owns three shutouts. She registered six saves Friday versus The Citadel.
Samford will next be in action Sunday at noon (CDT) as the Bulldogs conclude their two-match weekend road trip against the Mercer Bears at Bear Field in Macon, Georgia.
The Citadel will return to action on Sunday when it hosts SoCon foe Chattanooga at 2 p.m.
ETSU 3, Western Carolina 1
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – On Friday night inside Summers-Taylor Soccer stadium, the ETSU women's soccer team erupted in the second half, scoring two goals to remain perfect in Southern Conference play, defeating Western Carolina, 3-1.
It was a defensive battle in the first half with neither team registering a shot on goal during the first 20 minutes of action. The first shot of the game came from WCU's Kelly Pannell, who looked for the right corner of the net. However, ETSU ended up hurting itself, as an own goal was recorded, bouncing off a Buc defender to give the Catamounts an early 1-0 lead.
The physical defensive play kept up the entire half with ETSU breaking through on the scoreboard in the 42nd minute to tie the game up. After a free kick outside of the box, freshman Paulinne Vienne dropped off a pass that went just to the right of the goal for defender Emily McKerlie, who rocketed a shot that hit the back of the net to tie the game. It was McKerlie's first collegiate goal.
The turning point in game for the Bucs came when WCU senior midfielder Amanda Schwartz rocketed a shot at junior goalkeeper Jasmine Elliott, who made the diving save to her right to keep the Catamounts off the board.
From that moment on, the Bucs seemed to regain the momentum, scoring a goal just a few minutes later to take the lead. After gaining possession at midfield junior Molly Collinson struck a long pass to senior Sarah Zadrazil, who placed the ball in the back of the net after a misplay from the WCU goalkeeper. It was Zadrazil's fifth goal of the season and gave ETSU the lead for the first time in the match.
The lead grew for the Bucs just four minutes later in the 84th minute when junior Simona Koren scored her team-leading seventh goal of the season to put the game out of reach for the Catamounts in the 3-1 victory. Koren has now scored a goal in six straight games.
The Bucs remain undefeated in conference play with a record of 3-0 and an overall record of 8-4. The Blue & Gold will continue conference play next weekend at home when Mercer comes to Johnson City on Friday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m. The weekend concludes with a matchup against the Bulldogs of The Citadel on Sunday Oct. 11, at 1 p.m.
Western Carolina returns to action when it hosts The Citadel on Friday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m.
Wofford 1, VMI 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Senior Mary Beth Bleekrode converted a penalty-kick goal to give the Wofford women’s soccer team a 1-0 victory over VMI on Friday evening at Snyder Field.
A handball in the box called on a VMI defender gave Wofford the penalty-kick opportunity in the 74th minute. Bleekrode lined up the shot and hit a line drive that got past Keydet keeper Darien Dunham for the goal.
The goal was Bleekrode’s third of the season and the 11th of her career. It was also the third game-winning goal of her career.
VMI (4-8-0, 0-3-0 SoCon) had two good chances to equalize in the last 10 minutes of the match. Midfielder Sam Boney had an open shot on goal in the 83rd minute that Terrier goalkeeper Mayson Liner was able to save, and Keydet forward Olivia Cotton followed up two minutes later with another shot on goal that Liner stopped.
Overall in the match, the Terriers (2-4-3, 1-1-1 SoCon) outshot the Keydets 15-7, but both teams took six corner kicks in the match.
Liner was credited with her first collegiate victory in the match, playing all 90 minutes in net while recording four saves.
Dunham took the loss in net for the Keydets, also playing all 90 minutes of the match while notching eight saves.
Wofford is now 4-0 all-time against VMI, not allowing the Keydets to score in any of the four matches the teams have played.
The Terriers next play Sunday, as the team hosts SoCon foe UNCG at Snyder Field. That match is set to start at 2 p.m.
VMI returns to action at Furman on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Furman 0, UNCG 0 (2OT)
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The UNCG women’s soccer team (3-7-3) played 110 minutes of high-intensity soccer against Furman (8-4-1) Friday night as a blanket of mist fell over Stone Soccer Stadium on the campus of Furman University. Neither team was able to score, resulting in a 0-0 stalemate as both squads move to 1-1-1 in Southern Conference play.
UNCG dominated the first half of regulation with five corner kicks to the Paladins’ zero while holding a slight 9-4 advantage in shots. The second half of play was controlled more by Furman’s offense, which fired off 10 shots and took a 5-1 advantage in corner kicks. At the end of regulation, UNCG led Furman 16-14 in shots and 6-5 in corners but both goalkeepers made five saves.
Chloe Buehler made all five saves in regulation, as the Paladins were unable to get a shot on goal in either overtime period.
Georgia Brown took a game-high six shots, while both of Katelyn Mountjoy’s shots were on goal.
UNCG now leads the all-time series between the SoCon foes 14-11-3. Friday’s stalemate marks two consecutive trips to Greenville where the Spartans have tied Furman after two overtime periods marking the eighth overtime game in program history between the two teams.
UNCG will travel to Spartanburg, S.C., to face Wofford (2-4-3, 1-1-1) Sunday afternoon to continue its four-game road stretch. Kickoff is at 2 p.m. The Terriers are coming off a 1-0 SoCon victory over VMI Friday night.
Furman hosts VMI on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Mercer 6, Chattanooga 1
MACON, Ga. – The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s soccer team fell 6-1 Friday night at Bears Field in Southern Conference action. The Mocs fall to 2-8-2 overall and 0-2-1 in league play, while the Bears improve to 5-4-2 on the year and 2-0 against the SoCon.
Mercer got on the board early with a header by Sarah Daane off a corner kick from Katelyn Dimopoulos in the 19th minute. What would eventually prove to be the game-winner came off the foot of Dimopoulos at the 36:52 mark of the game. Her shot inside the 6-yard box came on a cross from Maddie Clark to make it 2-0.
Less than a minute later, Dimopoulos scored her second goal of the game with a header after picking up a shot close to the goal on a cross that was deflected by a Chattanooga defender. The teams went into intermission with Mercer leading 3-0.
It would take nearly 20 minutes into the second half before the Mocs found the net to cut it to 3-1 on a goal from sophomore Emily Moseley. Her third goal of the year came on a shot from 14 yards out to the top center of the net at the 64:40 mark of the game.
Mercer scored three more goals, getting its fourth on a penalty kick in the 79th minute. The Bears’ fifth goal was scored by Valerie Bermeo in the 84th minute, followed by a goal from Haleigh Svede just over two minutes later for the final 6-1 tally.
Chattanooga had 12 shots compared to Mercer’s 23 and the Bears’ had a 10-3 shots on goal advantage. UTC’s Katie Emig had four saves.
The Mocs travel to Charleston, S.C., to take on The Citadel on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Mercer hosts Samford on Sunday at 1 p.m.