WALESKA, Ga. — The Montreat College women's soccer team lost a 2-0 final to the Reinhardt University Eagles in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) play on Saturday. Following the result in Waleska, Ga., the Cavaliers moved to 3-5-0 (1-4-0 AAC) on the season, while RU improved to 6-3-1 (4-1-1 AAC).
Rebeca Cruz Manon created the match's first action as she rifled a shot wide less than two minutes into the contest. Later, in the 10
th minute,
Maddie Ellis forced the Eagles' goalkeeper to make a save. The Cavs added another push midway through the half, with
Leigh Harpel taking a corner in the 27
th minute and
Jocelyn Stanley placing a try on goal that was stopped 40 seconds later.
Anna Weissenfluh made a pair of first-half saves, but Reinhardt broke the scoreless deadlock with an assisted tally in the 36
th minute. That proved to be the only goal of the frame as the two squads entered the intermission with the hosts still in front, 1-0.
Cruz Manon forced a save shortly before RU put the visitors in a 2-0 hole. The Eagles doubled their advantage just 9:08 into the second half. Montreat continued to fire attempts on target, as Stanley, Harpel and
Katie Burton pressured the home side's defense; however, Reinhardt stood tall against each challenge. Weissenfluh kept the Cavaliers within shouting distance thanks to two more saves, but the offense couldn't uncover the final recipe to draw closer. The Cavs ended the contest scoreless, and RU wrapped up the 2-0 result.
Each squad totaled six shots on frame, while the Eagles accumulated more shot attempts (10-7), corner kicks (5-1) and saves (6-4) overall. The visitors picked up seven fouls on the day, while the hosts were whistled for six infractions.
Weissenfluh made four saves over 90 minutes in net. Stanley put both of her shots on target. Cruz Manon tied Stanley for the team lead with two shots, one of which was on goal. Harpel, Ellis and Burton each placed their lone attempt on frame.
"I'm proud of how our team battled today," said Head Coach
Kristin Eggert. "We are continuing to move forward in executing some things from the training ground, and I'm excited to see us break through this final barrier."
The Montreat College women's soccer team now heads to Columbia, S.C., for a league matchup with the Columbia College Koalas on Wednesday, Oct. 7. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m.
