By Caleb Bailey, Staff Writer
Armstrong’s soccer team hosted Newberry College in a non-conference matchup on Oct. 15 as they looked to get a winning streak going. Freshman Amanda Green provided the spark for her team as she scored the lone goal in the game for a 1-0 victory.
The Pirates came into the game knowing their opponents would be a tough team to play, as the Wolves entered the game having shutout their last five opponents and hosting an 8-1-1 record. The Pirates were aggressive on the offensive side of the ball for most of the contest and that was apparent in the early stages of the game.
The Pirates showed their aggressive nature as they outshot the Wolves 5-1 in the first ten minutes of the game. Sarah Olin dumped a pass off to Tiger Davis, who just missed a shot on goal. Jenny Allen followed her up with a shot that sailed to the left of the Wolves’ goal.
The home team would again have an opportunity to score when Allen made a beautiful turnaround pass to fellow freshman Green, who pushed a low shot past Newberry keeper Alexis Carrillo in the 15th minute.
”I thought we played well today,” Green said. “As far as the goal goes I give my credit to Jenny. She fed me the ball and I was just so close. We played good and fought hard to keep them at zero goals.”
The Pirates outshot the Wolves 16-9 in the 1-0 win. The victory was the Pirates’ 2nd straight and more importantly, a big win when it comes to the NCAA tournament.
“This was a must-win for us,” head coach Eric Faulconer excitedly explained. “There’s no margin for error anymore if we want to try and get to the NCAAs. So, we knew Newberry was going to be a good team. We grinded and found a way to close out a game.”
On Oct. 18, the Pirates celebrated Senior day at Pirate Field and hoped to carry their momentum into a Peach Belt Conference matchup with Georgia College. Armstrong dominated the game from start to finish, winning 5-0 and improving their record to 9-4 overall and 4-3 in the PBC.
Freshmen Jenny Allen and McKenzie Anderson put the Pirates up early with goals in the 17th and 39th minutes respectively. The Pirates would carry a 2-0 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Armstrong didn’t let off the throttle. Allen notched her second goal of the contest and 10th of the year in the 58th minute off of an assist from fellow freshman Amanda Green.
Shortly after, in the 78th minute, sophomore forward Sarah Olin notched her fourth goal of the season on a rebound shot inside the box.
The final goal of the contest was perhaps the most impressive. In the final minute, freshman Jade Smith crushed a shot into the upper left of the goal from upwards of 35 yards away to notch her first collegiate goal.
Faulconer said, “We’ve been up before and given it back away, so I’m really proud of the effort and that’s what we need in each game to keep moving forward.”
The Pirates take the field next when they host USC-Aiken on Oct. 22 in a PBC contest.
