FLORENCE, S.C. (Nov. 2) – In the regular season finale on Saturday, the University of Mount Olive women's soccer team fell by a 2-1 margin at Francis Marion in Conference Carolinas action.
With the loss, the Trojans drop to 7-4-5 this season behind a 5-4-3 record in league play. Francis Marion and Mount Olive each have clinched a spot in the Conference Carolinas Tournament and await the final seeding from the KPI rankings. Meanwhile, the Patriots finish the regular season at 9-2-4 overall with an 8-1-3 mark in conference action.
Francis Marion registered an early shot at the 1:12 mark from distance, which was comfortably saved by senior goalkeeper
Samantha Gildner. Just moments later, senior
Tianna Hill received a through ball near midfield and peppered a shot just over the crossbar as the contest remained scoreless. At the 3:59 mark, the Patriots scored following a cross into the box that was headed down and eventually scored by Kristina Syragakis to take a 1-0 advantage. FMU managed five more shots while the UMO offense was stifled for the remainder of the first half.
The Trojans registered a shot on goal in the opening moments of the second half, but the attempt was saved by the Patriot goalkeeper. Gildner kept Mount Olive in the game with three saves in just over a one-minute stretch before Francis Marion scored its second goal. In the 71st minute, Tehya Dave laced a 12-yard shot into the back of the net following a one-touch lay-off to extend the lead, 2-0. Mount Olive responded at the 76:48 mark as sophomore
Yaneli Sanchez netted her eighth goal of the season off an assist from senior
Tianna Hill to cut the deficit to 2-1. UMO recorded three more shots and a pair of corner kicks in the final 13 minutes, but ultimately fell by a final score of 2-1.
Gildner totaled seven saves on 15 shots faced while playing all 90 minutes.
The Patriots held a 15-7 edge in total shots while both sides registered three corner kicks.
Mount Olive awaits the final KPI rankings to determine its seed in the league tournament, which is set to start next Thursday, Nov. 7.
