University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Wofford
Stone, Houser Convert Corner Kicks Into 2-1 Win Over Wofford
08.24.2016 | Women's Soccer
THE RUNDOWN
Score: UNC Asheville 2 Wofford 1
Teams: UNC Asheville (1-2-0)
Wofford (0-3-0)
Spartanburg, S.C. – Sophomore midfielder Ellie Stone scored a pair of goals over a four minute span in the second half to spur the UNC Asheville women's soccer team to a 2-1 victory over Wofford College on the road this evening.
GAME AT A GLANCE
Neither team attempted a shot over the first five minutes until UNC Asheville junior goalkeeper Keller Dixon, who was making her first start of the season, stopped a shot by Wofford's Hannah Washko.
Following that, UNC Asheville got back-to-back shot attempts from Caroline Houser and Jessica Dooley, but one was blocked and the other was wide. At the 11:49 mark, Paige Trent's shot on goal was saved by Wofford's Alex Carroll.
UNC Asheville continued to get shots on goal over next 25 minutes. In the 34th minute, a corner kick from Houser led to another shot by Trent, but Carroll made another save.
Wofford closed the half with a pair of off the frame shots and a corner kick attempt, but both teams went into the half scoreless.
In the second half, UNC Asheville produced four shots and three corner kicks over the first 15 minutes, while not allowing a Wofford shot attempt until the 61st minute.
Later in the half, Stone took a corner kick from Houser and headed it over the keeper for the team's first goal of the season. Just under four minutes later, Houser booted another corner kick to Stone, who deflected it near post past the keeper for an insurance goal.
That second goal would prove valuable as Wofford's Katie Beuerlein scored with 51 seconds left on an assist from Hayley Younginer.
NOTABLES
Despite a late flurry from Wofford, UNC Asheville held a slim 16-15 advantage in total shots, including a 7-6 advantage in shots on goal.
A good sign for UNC Asheville's attacking offense was that they produced eight corner kicks, compared to just three for Wofford. And two of those eight corner kicks led to goals.
Dixon made five saves in her first start of the season in goal.
Houser and Trent led the team with four total shots apiece, while Trent had a team-high three on goal. Stone converted both of her shots on frame.
QUOTABLES
“Tonight was a great game that revealed our team identity. That was a really high effort and commit level from our players. You could feel the energy on the sideline. Every player was focused on the game plan and did a great job of giving energy to each other. We were disciplined and patient when defending and had relentless pursuit on our attack. The difference tonight was our bench players. They willed our players for 90 minutes and remained engaged from play to play. It was such an important road win for us tonight. Congrats to Ellie Stone for two goals tonight. She had great one time finishing in the box. We are going to enjoy this one, but we'll get right back to work tomorrow to prepare for Western Carolina on Friday.” – UNC Asheville head women's soccer coach Michelle Demko
UP NEXT
UNC Asheville improves to 1-1 on the current four-game road trip. They will travel to Western Carolina on Friday for a 7 p.m. match before closing out the road trip against UAB at 7 p.m. next Thursday. The team returns home on Sept. 4 against Kennesaw State at 1 p.m.
