Women’s Soccer Keeps Rolling, Win Fourth-Straight over Randolph
Griffin, Yates notch first Guilford goals in victory
from Bryce Johnson, Director of Athletic Communications
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Karly Griffin (Fort Mill, S.C.) and Ainsley Yates (West End, N.C.) each recorded their first goals as a Quaker, lifting the Guilford College women’s soccer team to a 2-0 victory over Randolph College in Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) action at Appenzeller Field at the Armfield Athletic Center on Wednesday evening.
GC picked up their fourth-straight win, and a point in their fourth-straight conference contest to improve to 9-2-2 on the season, 3-1-1 in league action. The WildCats fall to 6-5-1, 1-4-0 against ODAC opponents.
It was yet another clean sheet for Ady Franken (Peoria, Ill.) as she improved to 8-2-2 by making two saves on the four overall shots she faced on the evening. She picked up her fourth-straight complete game shutout, her longest streak of such efforts on the season, and eighth of the fall overall. Rachel Fields got the nod for RC, falling to 5-5-2 facing 17 shots, seven of them on frame, making five saves against two goals permitted.
Griffin scored her first collegiate goal, a game-winner that is also a career-first. Yates also found paydirt for her first goal with GC later in the contest. Zekiah Johnson (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and Kylie Muse (Browns Summitt, N.C.) each were awarded assists for the Quakers. Mya Rivera (Parish, Fla.) led the team with four shots, two on frame. Naomi Anderson (Youngsville, N.C.), Carmen Ellis (Johnson City, Tenn.), and Ashlyn Kahre (Fort Mill, N.C.) all took three shots with Anderson having one on frame. Madison Booker and Sterlyn Woodward each had a shot on goal for the guests.
Guilford controlled the tempo and had lots of chances early, the best of which came in the 11th minute of play. Rivera knocked down an attempted clear by the WildCats at the top of the six, regaining possession and shooting the ball into the back of the net. However, the officials determined that on the deflection, the ball got up off Rivera’s hand, whipping the goal off the board. Moments later, the Quakers got an indirect free kick from the goalie touching a pass-back with her hand, however, they could not execute on the ensuing play.
The hosts would break through later, in the 43rd minute, as following a Randolph goal kick, the Quakers regained possession with Andrea Cazares-Vasquez (Durham, N.C.) controlling around midfield. She hit Trinity Robinson (Burlington, N.C.) who used a touch pass on the left wing to set up a Rivera through ball to the top-left corner of the ’18. Griffin ran it down, battled through contact, and sent the ball across the box, finding the foot of Carlynne Wright. The WildCat defender inadvertently redirected the ball into the goal, granting the freshman her first collegiate goal.
Much of the second half was uneventful, with neither side getting a significant scoring opportunity, but the Quakers would eventually get some breathing room. In the 81st minute, Muse sent a ball down the center of the pitch that Johnson got a piece of to redirect it to Yates. She needed just one touch to control and reposition, navigating to the top of the 18’ straight-away before using her left foot to shoot the ball to the left post, doinking it off the frame and in for her first goal as a Quaker, bringing the score to the final tallies of 2-0.
The Quakers will stay on their home turf for a marquee ODAC matchup on Sunday afternoon when they will host Shenandoah University on October 20th starting at 12:00 PM.
#GoQuakes