BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C.— The Montreat women's soccer team hosted the first-place Reinhardt University Eagles for its regular season home finale, ultimately falling 2-0. With the loss, the Cavaliers dropped to 11-3 overall and 10-3 in the Appalachian Athletic Conference.
Reinhardt (13-2, 13-0 AAC) controlled the pace of play in the first half, including holding much of the possession. Despite the increased presence on the ball, the Eagles couldn't find a game-changing connection in the attacking third. The Eagles' best opportunity to score came in the 22
nd minute when Ryelyn Wells found herself in open space near the top of the Montreat 18-yard box. Shifting the ball to her left foot, Wells attempted to curl a shot inside the left post. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Wells couldn't quite wrap the strike inside the post as it dipped late and wide.
Montreat's lone shot on target in the match came off the foot of
Hayden Bunn. In the 11
th minute, Bunn applied pressure in the midfield and won possession. Dribbling in space with the Reinhardt goalkeeper Caroline Johnson off her line, Bunn tried her luck from roughly 30 yards out. Johnson, the reigning AAC and NAIA Defender of the Week, reacted quickly and stepped back to make a comfortable save at chest-height.
After the opening 45 minutes of play, Reinhardt held a minor edge in most statistical categories, including shots (7-2), shots on goal (4-1) and corner kicks taken (3-1). Landy made four saves in the first half to hold the Eagles scoreless, the first time this season in which an AAC opponent held Reinhardt without a tally through the first half.
Reinhardt's control of play continued in the second half. After surviving two early Montreat corner kicks, the Eagles finally found the attacking link-up they were searching for. In the 54
th minute, Lauren Akemon sent a corner from the right side into the box. The bouncing ball made it past Landy and several Cavalier defenders right to Wells. Wells settled the ball with her chest and, with composure, poked the ball across the goal line and into the netting.
The Eagles weren't done there. Just two and a half minutes later, Lidia Herrera doubled Reinhardt's lead. Wells was once again involved in the goal, this time on the assist. After winning possession to the right of Montreat's 18-yard box, Wells sent a cross toward the penalty area. Using her upper body, Herrera settled the pass and, one-on-one with Landy, blasted a shot into the upper netting for a 2-0 Reinhardt lead.
Outside of those few minutes, the Cavaliers prevented Reinhardt from creating overtly dangerous chances; however, Montreat couldn't find the space or the final pass in the attacking third to get on the scoresheet and cut the deficit in half. Reinhardt closed out the match to the tune of a 2-0 AAC win.
"I am proud of how we battled," said head coach
Kristin Eggert. "We were disciplined defensively and still created some dangerous chances."
Reinhardt outshot Montreat 20-5 over the course of 90 minutes, including a 7-1 advantage in shots on goal. The Eagles also held a 10-4 edge on corner kicks throughout the match.
Montreat women's soccer closes out its 2021 regular season on Saturday at Brenau University. The match is slated to kick off at 6:00 p.m. in Gainesville, Ga.
