Bowling Green, KY- The 18^th-ranked Patriots women's soccer team dominated in the first round of the Mid-South Conference Tournament Thursday night, taking down the Shawnee State Bears 6-0 at Warren East High School. Five Patriots got involved in the scoring action including Shara Randez, Alba Lorca, Naira Lopez, Amy Anderson, and Jillian Zurborg. With the win, Cumberlands improves to 13-2-1 and will move on to play in the semifinals of the conference tournament Friday.
 
From the opening kickoff the Patriots flexed their offensive power, dominating the possession battle and out-shooting the Bears 8-0 through the first 15 minutes. In the 14', Anihoa Camara passed upfield to Randez, who sent a well-placed shot past the SSU goalie to give the Patriots an early 1-0 lead. UC did not slow down their offense as Lopez split her defense and placed a shot into the upper corner making the score 2-0 with 18:48 remaining in the half. The Bears looked to get on the scoreboard but were unable to record any shots before the Patriots found the back of the net again. Camara came up big, taking the ball away from the Shawnee State GK to connect with Micha Harris who made a quick one-touch pass to Lorca for a goal to extend UC's lead to 3-0 heading into halftime.
 
The Patriots did not let up in the second half, as Randez, Emily Willoughby, and Laura Navajas all recorded shots on goal in the first three minutes. Randez got the second-half scoring started as she received a pass from Camara to put the ball past the goalie, giving the Patriots the 4-0 advantage. With 33:47 remaining, the Bears looked to make a comeback with their best scoring opportunity coming from a Lucy Snyder shot towards goal. Panis made a quick move to step in front of the shot to keep the Bears scoreless. Minutes later in the 58', Lopez sent a cross from a corner kick right to Anderson, who headed the ball into the net, extending Cumberlands' lead to five. Zurborg notched the final goal of the night for the Patriots as she got a takeaway in the midfield and dribbled the ball towards goal before she took a shot ten yards out make the final score 6-0 in favor of UC.
 
The win marks the ninth shutout of the season and Cumberlands first MSC Tournament win since November 3, 2016 when the Patriots defeated Shawnee State 3-0. Randez led the way for UC recording her second multi-goal game this season, the fourth of her career.

UC returns to action tomorrow, November 8, as they compete in the semifinals of the MSC Tournament. The Patriots will play third-seed Thomas More, who defeated Georgetown 2-0 in the quarterfinals. Kickoff is set for 5:00 pm. Live stats will be available here, while the championship page is available here.  

For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter - @UC_Patriots & @UCPatsGameday, Instagram - @UCPatriots, YouTube – CumberlandsPatriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.