ELON – In its return to Rudd Field after three straight road matches, the Elon University women's soccer team (6-2-4, 0-2-2 CAA) earned a point in the conference standings with a 1-1 tie against UNCW (7-3-2, 3-0-1).
Jess Beck scored in the 56th minute off a corner kick from
Ava Hellner to give the Phoenix the lead before the Seahawks leveled the score with a tally of their own in the 73rd minute.
Katie Bisgrove made three saves in net for the Phoenix.
The Phoenix is the first CAA team to tie with UNCW this season as the Seahawks had won their first three conference matches entering Thursday.
How It Happened
- UNCW registered the first two shots of the game, both of which were taken by Hailey Longwell. The second attempt forced Bisgrove's first stop of the contest.
- Elon's best scoring chance of the first half came in the 28th minute. Hellner played a corner in short before getting the ball back. Hellner sent a cross into the box that UNCW goalkeeper Morgan Hobbs came out of her net to deflect away. Jess Beck nudged the ball back toward the center of the crease, but the ball was cleared by UNCW's backline before a Phoenix could find a goal.
- The Phoenix cashed in on its first shot of the second half. After earning a corner, Hellner sent a cross into the box that Beck headed into the goal just before Hobbs could touch the ball, putting Elon ahead, 1-0.
- Gabby Hoschek forced a Hobbs save in the 69th minute on a low shot attempt.
- The Seahawks evened the score in the 73rd minute. After a cross from the corner into the box, Longwell headed a ball over a sprawling Bisgrove for UNCW's first goal of the night.
- Both teams took two more shots, with Bisgrove denying UNCW's Ayanna Parker on a shot in the 86th minute. Grace Gelhaus took the final shot of the match with just over a minute remaining.
Notes & Numbers
- Beck's goal was her third of the season and fourth of her career. It was her second goal to come against a CAA opponent, as the first goal of her freshman campaign was against William & Mary.
- Hellner's assist was her first of the campaign. The redshirt junior midfielder is up to seven points on the season.
- The Seahawks finished the match with a slight 5-4 edge in shot attempts. Four different Elon players attempted a shot on the night.
- Megan Dwyer and Jessica Hill both went the full 90 minutes for the Phoenix.
- Elon held UNCW to its second lowest shot output of the season. Only Ohio State limited the Seahawks to fewer shot attempts (3).
- UNCW's five shot attempts were the third fewest against the Phoenix in a match this season. This was the third time Elon has held an opponent to five or fewer shots, along with VMI (4) and South Carolina State (2).
- Elon and UNCW have split their last eight meetings, 3-3-2.
Up Next
The Phoenix heads to Buies Creek to face CAA South foe Campbell on Sunday. The contest will begin at 6 p.m.
Stay Posted
For further coverage of Elon women's soccer, follow the Phoenix on X (@ElonWSoccer), Instagram (elonwsoccer) and Facebook (Elon Women's Soccer).
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