ELON – A pair of goals in the final 15 minutes propelled the Elon women's soccer team (8-3-4, 3-2-2 CAA) to a crucial 2-0 CAA South Division victory Sunday against William & Mary (4-7-3, 3-3-1 CAA) at Rudd Field.
The Phoenix scored the two goals 3:35 apart to take control of the match late. The first tally came on a William & Mary own goal with
Lauren McCauley converting the second after stealing the ball from a Tribe defender.
In goal,
Anica Carpenter made her first start since Sept. 3 and anchored a clean sheet with five saves. The shutout was Elon's second in conference play this season.
Elon picked up three points in the CAA South standings with the win, vaulting ahead of the Tribe for solo second place.
How It Happened
- Carpenter made the game's first save in the 11th minute, denying a shot by Paige Seitz.
- The Tribe took eight of the first 10 shots of the contest with Carpenter making additional saves in the 29th and 35th minutes, respectively.
- Elon created a flurry of chances in the final 15 minutes of the first half. Nicole Kleyner and Isa Murdock each put a pair of shots on goal that were stopped by Tribe goalkeeper Gwen Doughty before a McCauley chance in front of the net was turned away by a sliding Doughty in the 41st minute.
- William & Mary attempted the final four shots of the period with Carpenter making a save in the closing seconds to send the game scoreless into halftime.
- Elon responded by taking seven of the first eight shots in the second half with McCauley and Kleyner forcing Doughty stops.
- In the 75th minute, Talia Feigin attempted to cross a ball into the box while making a run down the right sideline. The ball deflected off a Tribe defender and went into the goal to put Elon ahead 1-0.
- Just over three minutes later, McCauley stole a ball from a Tribe defender in William & Mary territory. She made a run toward the box and slid the ball to the right of Doughty to double Elon's lead in the 79th minute.
- The Phoenix held the Tribe without a shot in the final 20 minutes of the contest to secure the clean sheet and victory.
Notable Numbers
- McCauley's goal was her third of the season as the senior has now scored goals in consecutive matches for the first time in her career.
- Elon outshot William & Mary, 20-14, and finished the second half with a 12-2 advantage in shot attempts.
- The 20 shots matched the most Elon has taken in a conference match this season. The Phoenix also attempted 20 shots against Northeastern on Oct. 8.
- Kleyner and Murdock took four shots each to pace the Phoenix. McCauley attempted three shots with 10 different Elon players taking at least one.
- Ava Hellner, Grace Gelhaus, Jessica Hill and Alexis Pierce all logged the full 90 minutes in the field for Elon. Pierce has played all 630 minutes in conference play for the Phoenix.
- Jenna Abousaab made her third start of the season and her first since Sept. 3 at VMI.
- Carpenter made a season-high five saves in goal to secure her second solo clean sheet of the campaign. She has also shared three more shutouts alongside Naomi Person.
- The shutout was Elon's first in CAA play since its conference opener Sept. 20 against Campbell.
- Elon has now scored multiple goals in four of its seven CAA matches this season, including each of the last two.
- The Phoenix jumped ahead of William & Mary for second place in the CAA South standings with the victory. Elon is now one point ahead of the Tribe and three points clear of fourth-place Campbell.
Up Next
Elon closes out its home schedule with its Senior Day match against Hampton on Oct. 25. Kickoff at Rudd Field is slated for 1 p.m. with a pre-match senior recognition.
Stay Posted
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