FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood women's soccer earned three points with a gritty 1-0 win over UNC Asheville on Saturday afternoon.
Claire Schultz had the lone goal of the match on a penalty kick for the Lancers (3-9-3, 2-2-1 Big South), and the back line of
Sydney Robertson,
Amanda Arnone,
Berni Wayland and
Emma Jones combined with goalkeeper
Sara Curtis for the shutout.
| SCORE |
1 |
2 |
FINAL |
| UNCA |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| LWU |
1 |
0 |
0 |
31' | LWU—
Claire Schultz (2), penalty kick
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The match was choppy, especially after halftime, but the Lancers were the side that was in charge for the majority of the opening 45 minutes.
The Lancer defense didn't allow a shot during that stretch, and the offense fired off six shots. Ultimately, the team outshot Asheville (2-8-1, 0-1 Big South) 12-4.
As Longwood kept pressing forward, they applied pressure before finally breaking through in the 31
st minute.
Longwood earned a free kick, and Schultz nearly got on the end of a wonderful service from
Sydney Robertson. She was taken down while shooting by the Asheville backline, and, after a replay review, was given a penalty kick. Schultz calmly buried it for her second goal in as many games.
The back line made sure it stuck. Asheville created a few looks late in the contest, but Curtis made a pair of saves and the back four snuffed out other opportunities. It was the first shutout of the season for the Lancers.
Longwood had chances to extend the lead, but Gracie Murray, Asheville's goalkeeper, made five saves.
WHAT THEY SAID:
"We are definitely happy to earn the shutout and three points at home," said Longwood Head Coach
Todd Dyer. "It got a little frantic at the end, so we'd like to see a little more composure and game management in these situations moving forward. Beyond all that, credit to Asheville for being here and being extremely competitive in spite of everything that they've been dealing with back in their area."
"This win was really important to us," said Schultz. "We really have to bring the energy for our last three games because those are really important for us in the standings."
"Recently, I switched to forward, so I think I'm liking that position right now," Schultz said about scoring twice in the past two games. "Coming from the midfield position, I know how to work with my midfielders really well, and I have a really good awareness of where they are on the field."
UP NEXT:
Longwood returns to the pitch when the team heads to Radford on Wednesday, October 16. The match is set for 7 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
#GoWood #HorsePower
