After a convincing win over Oglethorpe in the opening round of the SAA Tournament, Centre Women's Soccer came into Friday's semifinal versus Trinity full of confidence. It did not last long as an early Trinity goal put the Colonels behind, and they would not recover in a 2-0 defeat.
The Tigers had a go on goal less than 90 seconds in. The shot sailed high but was an omen for the rest of the semifinal. Trinity tallied that early goal in the 6th minute to grab the lead. Centre's first chance for an equalizer came in the 12th minute off the foot of
Zara McCarthy but to no avail. Trinity doubled its lead in the 20th minute to keep the pressure on Centre.
The Colonels had 2 more chances in the 28th and 30th minutes but could not get either shot by the Trinity keeper.
Claire Mullen and
Mary Martin Hampton had the shots but could not hit the net. Trinity had another go on goal in the 37th minute, but
Madeline Redmon was there for the stop as the Colonels trailed, 2-0, at the half.
Trinity fired early in the 2nd half, forcing a save from Redmon just 37 seconds into the half. The Colonel back line then had to step in and help its keeper just a minute later as Trinity looked for the knockout shot. The pressure kept coming, but Redmon proved up to the task as she turned away every shot she faced in the half. Centre's chances for offense were limited in the half.
Annie Walz had a shot on target in the 62nd minute that went right at the keeper for the save. The final chance came from distance in the 86th minute as
Tessa Miles shot from just outside the box but the pace was manageable for the Tiger keeper to close out the game.
Despite the loss,
Madeline Redmon turned in another strong outing in goal. The freshman recorded 8 saves on the day to keep the Colonels within reach. Trinity ended the day with a 26-8 edge in total shots and 12-5 on goal.
Centre will now turn its NCAA Tournament hopes to an at-large bid via the Selection Show on Monday at 11:00am.
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