Anderson, Rivera Strike, Women’s Soccer Knocks Off Ferrum
Quakers hand Panthers first loss of season with strong second half
from Bryce Johnson, Director of Athletic Communications
FERRUM, Va. – Naomi Anderson (Youngsville, N.C.) and Mya Rivera (Parish, Fla.) each struck within an eight-minute span for the Guilford College women’s soccer team, as they knocked Ferrum College from the ranks of the unbeatens with a 2-0 victory at Penn-Roediger Field in Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) action on Wednesday evening.
The Quakers pick up their first outright victory of their ODAC slate with the win, improving to 1-1-1 in league play, and 7-2-2 overall. The Panthers suffered their first setback of the season, meanwhile, dropping to 11-1-0 overall and 2-1-0 against conference competition.
Ady Franken (Peoria, Ill.) added yet another clean sheet to her ledger, accumulating her sixth shutout and sixth victory of the campaign, improving to 6-2-2 facing 12 shots and stopping six. Ashli Wuss, who had only been scored upon five times in 11 matches to this point, permitted a pair of goals against eight saves on the 23 total shots sent her way, suffering her first defeat of the year to fall to 11-1-0.
Anderson netted the game-winning score, her third of the season, with Rivera adding a tally of her own. Both were unassisted. Jenna Shotton (Walnut Cove, N.C.) finished with a game-leading six shot attempts, three of them on goal, tied with Anderson for the team-high. Rivera finished with four total shots with Kylee Berry (Kernersville, N.C.), Karly Griffin (Fort Mill, S.C.), and Trinity Robinson (Burlington, N.C.) getting one shot on frame for the guests. Bri Bitz served as the offensive focal point for the Panthers, leading them in shots with four, and a trio of shots on goal. Jamie Adams, Kayla Fedison, and Amber Nicole Gillen also got shots on frame.
The Panthers were the initiators of the action in the matches’ early stages, taking the first four shots of the night, including the first two on frame over the first 11 minutes and change. From there, the Quakers began to assert themselves, with Anderson getting a look on frame that was handled just ahead of the 14-minute mark although after that time, each squad only had a single shot on goal apiece.
That’s not to say the opening stanza did not see much action, quite the contrary, in fact, with 16 total shots taken between the two clubs, and Guilford holding the edge, 9-7. However, there were not many looks of high quality as only five shots threatened the twine with the hosts holding the advantage, 3-2 in that category, in addition to taking the only corner of the half.
The Quakers seized the advantage early in the second half of play. Maneuvering from the right sideline towards the center of the pitch, and into the upper-right portion of the 18’, Anderson got a sliver of daylight and took advantage of it. Using her left foot, the graduate student went far side, with her shot settling into the left side of the frame about medium height for the opening tally, her sixth of the season.
Maintaining the pressure, the guests doubled the advantage less than eight minutes later. Receiving a feed from the right wing, Rivera used her chest to settle the ball, before battling through some contact to shake the Ferrum defender in the center of the pitch. She took advantage of the newly found space that she was granted, dribbling straight-away from just beyond the arch above the 18-yard box, using her left foot to tuck a beautiful shot into the upper-right intersection to double the advantage with her third goal of the year.
Staked to a multi-goal advantage, the Quakers largely settled back and settled in, limiting the scoring chances for FC. They were also aggressive in seeking their own chances to add on, pilling up 14 shots in the frame, half of them on goal. Conversely, the hosts only finished with five shot attempts in the half, albeit with four of them on target, but Franken deterred them all to bring the final score to 2-0 in favor of GC.
The Quakers head north once more to battle Eastern Mennonite University next on Saturday, October 12th. First kick against the Royals is set for 3 PM.
#GoQuakes
Kelley’s Strong Showing Not Enough In Close Contest Against Maroons
Cameron Robinson and Alex Harrison secure their first starts of the season
from Angel Maldonado, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant
GREENSBORO, N.C – The Guilford College men’s soccer team hosted Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) opponent Roanoke College at Appenzeller Field on Wednesday evening, falling in a closely contested match by a tally of 1-0.
The Quakers were unsuccessful in tonight’s match up, falling to 3-8-0 on the season and 0-5 in ODAC play. The Maroons, who are fifth in the ODAC, improved to 6-2-2, and 3-2 in conference play..
Chris Kelley (Lexington, N.C.) got the nod in goal for Guilford securing ten saves opposite one goal allowed among the 18 shots he faced, falling to 2-7-0 in net. Luca Gustafson improved to 6-2-2 for Roanoke, making one save among the nine Quaker shot attempts.
Chris Hercules (Greensboro, N.C.), Dani Santos (Port St. Lucie, Fla), Alex Harrison (Greensboro, N.C.), and Saeed Saavedra (Mount Airy, N.C.), had two shot attempts each with Chase Lewis(Fayetteville, N.C.), registering one.
The game started with a slow pace as both teams battled for control. Cameron Robinson (Garner, N.C.) and Harrison made their first starts of the season for the Quakers (sentence is a bit clunky here). The opening stages saw fouls and a goal kick, but no clear-cut chances until the 17th minute when Harrison had the game’s first significant opportunity. A well placed through ball from Elijah McGowen (Chesterfield, Va.) found Harrison near the far post, the freshman hit a right-footed shot near the bottom-left of the goal but was denied by the keeper, making a one-footed save.
In the 22nd minute, the Maroons began to assert their dominance in possession, connecting a pair of passes in the midfield, hitting a through ball down the left wing. Carlos Lomena executed a pair of skill moves, cutting in from the left wing, and unleashed a shot that forced a save from Kelly, who was in top form throughout the match.
In an intense defensive stance by the Quakers, Roanoke found an open slot, executing a perfectly timed through ball, splitting the defense. Blake Whittle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) attempted to recover and drop back, but unfortunately gave up a penalty. Alex Lopacinski stepped up to take the spot kick, but Kelley denied him with a superb low save to keep the game level.
A defensive showcase is one way to describe the first half as Kelley continued to assert a strong presence. Roanoke executed a perfect build-up play on the left wing, pinging a cross into the box, however, Saavedra displayed his athleticism and cleared the ball off a header. The ball bounced near the outside of the 18’ and was struck by Roanoke, off a first touch, right into Kelley’s hands.
Roanoke came out strong in the second half, with Lomena creating another dangerous opportunity in the 46th minute, but Kelley again stood firm to keep the scoreline unchanged. Guilford had their own opportunities, most notably in the 57th minute when Chris Hercules found himself one-on-one with the keeper, but was unable to finish, after executing a beautiful first touch to control the through ball.
The turning point came in the 71st minute when the Quakers were reduced to ten men after Whittle received a red card from a last-ditch tackle just feet beyond the box. Roanoke capitalized on the ensuing free kick, with Hugo Berg’s shot hitting the post and bouncing into the box, where Pacific Ibanzi slotted the rebound into the back of the net to make it one-nil.
Despite being down a man, the Quakers fought hard for an equalizer, but could not break through Roanoke’s defense, resulting in a narrow 1-0 defeat.
Guilford looks to secure their first ODAC win as they travel to Randolph-Macon College on Saturday, October 12. Kickoff is slated for 3 PM.
#GoQuakes