CLINTON, S.C. – What started off as a relatively quiet nonconference affair turned rambunctious in a hurry on Sunday afternoon during the Presbyterian Women's Soccer team's in-state clash with The Citadel. Despite grabbing a 1-0 lead at the end of one, the Blue Hose fell on the wrong side of a scoring spree over the last 45 minutes, eventually taking a 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Bulldogs when the dust settled.
FINAL SCORE: The Citadel 4, Presbyterian 2
RECORDS: Presbyterian (0-4-2), The Citadel (3-2)
LOCATION: Martin Stadium (Clinton, S.C.)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Carrying the momentum of her first collegiate strike in the team's previous outing against Kennesaw State, forward
Sloan Spees duplicated that performance plus an additional goal 56 minutes apart. Firing an unassisted score before the match had reached its 8-minute mark, Spees' second goal in as many games allowed the Blue Hose to stroll into intermission with the advantage.
A drastic shift in the game's pace occurred over the final stanza, with a total of five shots connecting from both sides including Spees' second of the day off a double assist from freshmen
Abby Ferris and
Lindsey Malyszek at the 63:16 mark. That score – which tied things up at two each – would be the final of the afternoon for head coach
Brian Purcell and co., leaving room for the Bulldogs to find the back of the net twice over the final 15 minutes.
Among the second-half chaos on Sunday, each side secured five corner kick opportunities beside 16 total shots after the break. Spees,
Kali Zmistowski, and
Caitlin Murphy each registered two looks at the net in the loss, with both of the newbie's attempts finding the sweet spot.
COACH PURCELL'S THOUGHTS:
"I thought we played very well for most of the game against a very experience Citadel team. I believe we are improving in all facets of the game, which at this stage of nonconference play, is the most important part of this season so far".
UP NEXT:
Following the highest-scoring bout of 2022 thus far, the Blue Hose will finish off their three-game home stretch later this week, welcoming the Georgia State Panthers to Martin Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 8.
GSU will enter Presbyterian's penultimate nonconference match with a 2-0 record all-time against PC, winning their first two contests of the '22 schedule before losing or tying the next three awaiting Sunday night's head-to-head with Jacksonville State in Atlanta.
First touch this Thursday is aimed for 7:00 p.m., broadcasted live via ESPN+.
