Southern Miss Women’s Soccer Ends Season with a Program Record 13 Wins and 11 Shutouts After Falling to North Texas 2-1 in the C-USA Title Match
11/4/2018 2:53:00 PM | Women's Soccer
The Golden Eagles and the Mean Green took the match to double overtime before a champion was crowned
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NORFOLK, Va. – The Southern Miss Golden Eagles (13-6-1, 5-4-1 C-USA) fell to the North Texas Mean Green (15-2-3, 8-1-1 C-USA) 2-1 in double overtime in the 2018 Air Force Reserve Women's Soccer Championship Title Match on Sunday afternoon in Norfolk, Va.
Southern Miss gave a valiant effort as they took the Mean Green down to the wire.
North Texas was provided with a prime scoring opportunity after earning a penalty kick early in the match at the 12:38 mark. North Texas senior forward Aalliyah Nolan took the penalty kick for the Mean Green but missed wide left.
Nolan redeemed herself just minutes later though as she netted a goal on a corner kick, giving North Texas a 1-0 lead.
The score remained 1-0 in favor of North Texas for the majority of the match until the 78:55 mark. In the 79th minute of play, Southern Miss senior defender and team captain Ola Akinniyi found the back after finishing off a free kick from sophomore defender Caitlin Pierce. Akinniyi, a Denton, Texas native, tied the match for the Golden Eagles with her goal in the 79th minute against her hometown university. Pierce earned the assist on the goal by Akinniyi.
With the scoreboard reading 1-1 at the end of regulation, Southern Miss and North Texas headed into overtime.
With neither team being able to manufacture a goal in the first overtime period, the Golden Eagles and the Mean Green kicked off a second overtime period.
At the 105:45 mark of the match, North Texas senior midfielder Lauryn Bruffett headed a set piece into the back of the net, giving the Mean Green a 2-1 victory in double overtime. Madeline Guderian and Elle Marie DeFrain were credited with the double assist on the goal by Bruffett.
The Southern Miss women's soccer team will have nothing to hang their heads about as they finished the season by posting the winningest season in the history of the program.
The Golden Eagles ended the 2018 season with a program record 13 overall wins and 11 shutouts. They also notched five conference wins during the regular season marking the most conference wins recorded by any Southern Miss women's soccer team since 2000.
Southern Miss sophomore goalkeeper Kendell Mindnich finished the season with seven individual shutouts, breaking the previous single-season individual Southern Miss shutouts record of six, set by Anna Snyder in 2003.
The Golden Eagles made postseason history as well, earning their first C-USA Tournament bid since 2007. They added to their history by recording the first quarterfinal and semifinal tournament victories in the history of the program.
In addition, Southern Miss earned their first appearance in the C-USA Tournament Title Match after knocking off No. 3 seed UAB and No. 2 seed FAU in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds respectively.
Despite being defeated by North Texas on Sunday afternoon, Southern Miss certainly gained valuable experience throughout the season as they were tested all season long and rose to the challenge time and time again. With many starters and key contributors returning next season, the future for the Southern Miss women's soccer program looks to be bright for many years to come.
NORFOLK, Va. – The Southern Miss Golden Eagles (13-6-1, 5-4-1 C-USA) fell to the North Texas Mean Green (15-2-3, 8-1-1 C-USA) 2-1 in double overtime in the 2018 Air Force Reserve Women's Soccer Championship Title Match on Sunday afternoon in Norfolk, Va.
Southern Miss gave a valiant effort as they took the Mean Green down to the wire.
North Texas was provided with a prime scoring opportunity after earning a penalty kick early in the match at the 12:38 mark. North Texas senior forward Aalliyah Nolan took the penalty kick for the Mean Green but missed wide left.
Nolan redeemed herself just minutes later though as she netted a goal on a corner kick, giving North Texas a 1-0 lead.
The score remained 1-0 in favor of North Texas for the majority of the match until the 78:55 mark. In the 79th minute of play, Southern Miss senior defender and team captain Ola Akinniyi found the back after finishing off a free kick from sophomore defender Caitlin Pierce. Akinniyi, a Denton, Texas native, tied the match for the Golden Eagles with her goal in the 79th minute against her hometown university. Pierce earned the assist on the goal by Akinniyi.
With the scoreboard reading 1-1 at the end of regulation, Southern Miss and North Texas headed into overtime.
With neither team being able to manufacture a goal in the first overtime period, the Golden Eagles and the Mean Green kicked off a second overtime period.
At the 105:45 mark of the match, North Texas senior midfielder Lauryn Bruffett headed a set piece into the back of the net, giving the Mean Green a 2-1 victory in double overtime. Madeline Guderian and Elle Marie DeFrain were credited with the double assist on the goal by Bruffett.
The Southern Miss women's soccer team will have nothing to hang their heads about as they finished the season by posting the winningest season in the history of the program.
The Golden Eagles ended the 2018 season with a program record 13 overall wins and 11 shutouts. They also notched five conference wins during the regular season marking the most conference wins recorded by any Southern Miss women's soccer team since 2000.
Southern Miss sophomore goalkeeper Kendell Mindnich finished the season with seven individual shutouts, breaking the previous single-season individual Southern Miss shutouts record of six, set by Anna Snyder in 2003.
The Golden Eagles made postseason history as well, earning their first C-USA Tournament bid since 2007. They added to their history by recording the first quarterfinal and semifinal tournament victories in the history of the program.
In addition, Southern Miss earned their first appearance in the C-USA Tournament Title Match after knocking off No. 3 seed UAB and No. 2 seed FAU in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds respectively.
Despite being defeated by North Texas on Sunday afternoon, Southern Miss certainly gained valuable experience throughout the season as they were tested all season long and rose to the challenge time and time again. With many starters and key contributors returning next season, the future for the Southern Miss women's soccer program looks to be bright for many years to come.
Players Mentioned
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