DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Embry-Riddle women's soccer squad ended their 2009-10 regular season on a high note Friday night, defeating NCAA II Palm Beach Atlantic 3-2 in a non-conference contest at the Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium. The Eagles moved to 12-5 overall as the Sailfish fell to 4-8-1.
ERAU also grabbed at least a share of The Sun Conference title on Friday night due to a Northwood loss to St. Thomas. The Eagles and Seahawks both have one loss on the year, however the Seahawks beat the Eagles head-to-head earlier in the season. Northwood visits SCAD on Nov. 1 in Savannah, Ga. If SCAD upsets Northwood then the Eagles will win The Sun Conference title outright; if Northwood beats the Bees then Northwood and Embry-Riddle will share the conference crown, while Northwood will be the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament due to their head-to-head victory over the Eagles.
The Eagles started the scoring with an Elina Johansson goal in the 17th minute; Cecilie Henriksen assisted on the score. The goal was Johansson's 20th of the season, increasing her single-season record for goals.
The Sailfish answered in the 39th minute when Courtney Calhoun hammered home a free kick from the left side of the penalty box to tie the game at one apiece.
Neither team could muster another score in the first period as the teams entered the break deadlocked at 1-1.
Senior Kristen Phelps got a great pass from Johansson at the 53:44 mark and dribbled past a defender and the PBA goalkeeper to notch her second goal of the season.
PBA's Ashley Shoaf brought the Sailfish back into the game with a goal just seven minutes later after a PBA corner kick was kicked around in the box. Shoaf corraled the loose ball and scored from just inside the 18-yard box to tie the score 2-2.
The Blue and Gold had one final answer for the Sailfish as freshman Hanna Lundqvist was set up perfectly by Johansson as she scored her 14th goal of the season to account for the final, 3-2.
Sophomore goalkeeper Dina Roper made five saves in 90 minutes for the Eagles, moving her record to 11-4. PBA's Ashley Morrell saved three shots in the loss.
The Eagles outshot the Sailfish 15-12, but PBA held the edge in corner kicks, 3-2.
Friday night was also senior night for the four Eagle seniors, Chloe Cowart, Mandy Drummond, Lindsey Evans and Kristen Phelps. All four seniors were four-year contributors to the ERAU program.
The Eagles will begin postseason play next Friday when they host a Sun Conference semifinal at home. Game time is set for 6 p.m.
