BLACK MOUNTAIN N.C.— The Montreat women's soccer team hosted the Reinhardt University Eagles in a conference affair Wednesday afternoon during hazy weather. Despite a hard-fought battle, the Cavaliers fell 1-0. Montreat now stands at 3-4-0 (3-2-0 AAC) this season.
The first half of the game was fiercely competitive, with both teams trying to keep the other one from scoring. As the match continued, the Cavaliers miscommunicated resulted in an own goal giving the Eagles the first goal of the match. Reinhardt University (5-4-0, 5-0-0 AAC), who is undefeated in conference play so far, set the tone early as it committed six total shots in the first half. Logan White, a sophomore from Surprise, Ariz., made two saves to keep the Eagles from adding to their lead.
RU controlled much of the remainder of the competition, despite a shot from long range off the boot of JJ Aalbue in the 57th minute that was just over the crossbar. With strong defensive play by both teams, the Cavs came close to matching the score but tries were unsuccessful.
The Cavaliers increased their pressure during the last minutes of the match, but it wasn't enough to put the ball into the goal. At the end of the match, though the Cavs topped the saves count 5-2, the Eagles recorded a 14-5 shot advantage as the match concluded with a score of 1-0.
"I am extremely proud of the effort and work rate tonight. We are experiencing what it will take to cross over to the next level in this conference and we are hunting for it," head coach Kristin Eggert said of the match.
Catch women's soccer play its next contest against Brenau University in Gainesville, Ga. at 5 p.m. this Friday.
