MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. – Second-half goals by
Marie Myhrvold Seim and
Julia Olsson propelled the Embry-Riddle women's soccer team to a 2-0 victory over host Georgia College in the final game of the Bobcat Shootout on Sunday. The win evened the Eagles' record at 2-2, while the Bobcats move to 0-4.
"This is the second weekend where we've had to play a hot second game against a hard-working opponent," ERAU Head Coach Samantha Bohom commented. "Like last week versus Queens, I am very pleased with our response. We knew we let one get away on Friday, so we felt some pressure to get a result today. Georgia College is much better than their record shows and we had to execute well to break them down. I thought our reserves each gave us a lift as they entered the game."
A hard-fought first half saw the Eagles with a 5-4 edge in shots. The Bobcats had two shots on frame compared to one by the Eagles, but ERAU goalkeeper
Dana Ruchti came up with a pair of strong saves to keep the home team off the board and at the half, the score was knotted at 0-0.
On the Bobcat kick-off to start the second half, Myhrvold Seim took the ball off a GC defender and raced unimpeded toward the goal. Bobcat goalkeeper Kate Richardson came up with a big save to deny the ERAU freshman, but Myhrvold Seim continued to create chances for the Eagles and with 31 minutes left in the second, her effort paid off.
Natalie Allen played the ball in from the left side to Myhrvold Seim and she dribbled through two Bobcat defenders into the box and slotted the ball past Richardson to put the Eagles' up 1-0.
Just over seven minutes later,
Allie McMandon played a ball into
Julia Olsson streaking through the middle of the pitch. Olsson's first touch beat her defender and allowed her to drill a strike from 22 yards out into the upper netting to give the Blue and Gold a two-goal advantage.
The Eagles dominated the game in the second half, outshooting the Bobcats 11-4 and posting a 3-0 advantage in corner kick opportunities. After making two saves in the first frame, Ruchti was only forced to make one stop in the second as the Eagles recorded their second clean sheet of the season.
The Eagles will play an exhibition game on Thursday at Stetson before opening Sunshine State Conference play at Florida Tech on September 25.
"This is the deepest team we've had in a long time and it was a huge factor today," Bohon said. "Each game, we're starting 5-6 new starters from last year's squad, so we're still trying to learn and get a rhythm. We are excited to head home with the result today and finally get a stretch where we can get some training in and a valuable exhibition game before opening conference play."
