Williamsburg, KY – The UC women's soccer team continues their historic run as they advance to the final site of the NAIA National Tournament after defeating the second-seed, Missouri Valley, 3-2 in the championship game of the Williamsburg Bracket. It marks the first time in program history that Patriots advance to the final site and will be one of the ten teams competing in Foley, AL.
Shara Randez led the Patriots with a goal and an assist in the win, while
Laura Navajas Marin and
Jenna Rockwell both added a goal in the game.
Ainhoa Camara added an assist in the win as well.
UC looked to strike first as
Jayden Boelter got behind the backline in the first minute, however, her shot was saved by the Vikings keeper. The Patriots added another shot on frame ten minutes later, before the two teams traded shots wide keeping the match scoreless after the opening 15 minutes. The game remained tied until the 25' when Rockwell committed a foul in the box, which led to a penalty kick. Missouri Valley converted the pk to take a 1-0 lead. Navajas Marin looked for the equalizer two minutes later but couldn't convert. The Patriots continued to apply the pressure and in the 40' Navajas Marin ran a give-and-go with Camara as Navajas Marin netted her third goal of the opening round and evened the score at 1-1. UC was able to run out the closing minutes of the first half keeping the game tied 1-1 at the break.
Missouri Valley came out strong in the second half firing three straight shots over the first six minutes, however, they all sailed wide. The ball was held in the midfield over the next ten minutes as the two teams traded possession. The game remained even until the 66' minute when Boelter fired a rocket towards the goal, which deflected off the crossbar. The Vikings tried to clear the ball, however, it was headed directly to Randez, who fired it home giving the Patriots the 2-1 lead with 25:53 remaining in the second half. Cumberlands looked to extend their lead two minutes later as
Riley Barrett fired a shot, but it was blocked by the Vikings defense keeping the score 2-1. The two teams continued to trade possession until the 87' when
Jillian Zurborg shot was deflected across the end line. On the ensuing corner kick, Randez launched a high lob and found Rockwell on the far post for the header into the back of the net extending UC's lead to 3-1. Missouri Valley converted another penalty kick a minute later to make 3-2, however, that was closest the game got as the clock expired for the 3-2 final.
Cumberlands outshot the Missouri Valley Vikings 15-9 in the game, while holding a 7-3 edge in cornerkicks. UC's backline of
Selena Barnett, Ryan Bryant,
Makayla Ousley, Rockwell,
Hannah Tharp, and Zurborg limited the Vikings to just two shots on goal in the contest.
The Patriots will be the sixth-seed at the final site and will face third-seed Keiser in the quarterfinals. There game is set for Thursday, April 19, at 7 p.m. The NAIA National Championships are scheduled for April 27-May 3 at the Foley Sports Tourism Championship Field. For more information about the NAIA championship click
here.
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