CHARLESTON, S.C. – In a back-and-forth slugfest that featured a wild finish to regulation, Longwood and Charleston Southern traded numerous late-round blows before battling to a 2-2 stalemate Saturday afternoon at CSU Soccer Field.
All four of the game's goals came within the final 15 minutes of the first and second halves, including the closing minutes of the second half when Charleston Southern (4-1-2, 1-0-1 Big South) tied the game twice on strikes from Kayla Robinson and Siera Kirby.
Those equalizers erased a pair of go-ahead strikes from Lancer sophomore
Madison Lockamy and senior
Kelly Almeida and forced the Big South preseason No. 2 Lancers (2-4-3, 0-0-1 Big South) to settle for their second straight draw to open Big South play.
"We started off very strong and held the lead twice, but we still found a way to sabotage ourselves," said Longwood head coach
Todd Dyer. "Even so, we still had some great chances late, but it wasn't our day. We just have to find a way to take better care of the ball and manage games with our decision-making."
The momentum swung like a pendulum on Charleston Southern's home field, as Longwood took a 1-0 lead 71 seconds before halftime on Lockamy's buzzer-beating go-ahead strike, and Robinson returned the favor with a game-tying goal that came with just 15 minutes remaining in regulation. Robinson's equalizer set in motion a wild finish in which Almeida reclaimed Longwood's lead on a 22-yard free kick four minutes later, only to watch Kirby snatch away Longwood's win with another game-tying strike with just 79 seconds left on the clock.
That goal forced the Lancers into their second straight overtime game which, thanks to three saves from Longwood goalkeeper
Madison Van Dyke in the second extra period, ended in another 2-2 draw. The stalemate pushes the Bucs to the top of the Big South with a 1-0-1 record that is buoyed by Saturday's draw and a 3-2 overtime win against Presbyterian this past Wednesday.
Charleston Southern entered the weekend with the Big South's second-stingiest scoring defense, holding their first six opponents of the season to just 1.10 goals per game. Longwood became just the third team all season to score multiple goals against the Buccaneers, but Robinson and Kirby made up for that on the other end with their two strikes, doing so against goalkeeper
Madison Van Dyke who matched a career high with eight saves.
The Lancers will get another shot at collecting their first Big South win this Wednesday, Sept. 26, at Radford. That game will kick off at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ and precedes Longwood's return to Farmville for a two-game homestand against Presbyterian and Hampton on Sept. 29 and Oct. 3.
Inside the Box Score
- Longwood freshman Danielle Toone registered her first career assist on Madison Lockamy's first-half goal, finding her sophomore teammate with a pass to the middle of the box near the penalty mark.
- Longwood outshot Charleston Southern 18-13, but the Buccaneers put 10 of theirs on goal, compared to just six by the Lancers.
- Lancer goalkeeper Madison Van Dyke matched a career high with eight saves, dispatching all but two of the 10 shots she faced.
- Charleston Southern goalkeeper Alyssa Delacqua made four saves in relief of fellow goalkeeper Jazmin Gonzalez, who leads the Big South in goals against average and ranks second in save percentage but did not play Saturday.
- Longwood forward Emilie Kupsov took six of Longwood's 18 shots.
- Senior Sydney Wallace and sophomore Carrie Reaver played all 110 minutes. Those two have been on the field together for every minute of eight of Longwood's nine games this season.
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