MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The William Carey women's soccer team secured a 3-0 victory over Xavier University of Louisiana on Thursday morning in the semifinals of the SSAC Championship at the Emory Folmar YMCA Complex.
The match was tightly contested throughout the opening half, with Carey controlling much of the possession but struggling to generate sustained offensive pressure against a stout Gold Nuggets defense. The Lady Crusaders finally broke through in the 19th minute when
Mia Encinia and
Paloma Paris combined to set up
Kayla Martin, who wasted no time finding the back of the net to give WCU a 1-0 advantage. The remainder of the half followed a similar pattern, with Carey maintaining control and taking its one-goal lead into the break.
The Lady Crusaders continued to dictate play in the second half, although Xavier managed to create a few scoring opportunities. Each time, William Carey goalkeeper
Alicia Garwood was up to the challenge, making key saves to preserve the 1-0 lead.
Like the opening half, Carey capitalized on its limited chances in the final 45 minutes. Raquel Royo sparked the attack with a shot from distance that was initially saved, but the Xavier goalkeeper was unable to secure the rebound.
Sara Aguirre quickly pounced on the loose ball and finished the opportunity to double the Lady Crusaders' lead.
William Carey put the match away in the 84th minute.
Maddie Davis and
Alba Aguado connected with Martin, who slipped behind the Xavier back line and found herself one-on-one with the goalkeeper. Martin calmly finished into the bottom corner for her second goal of the match, extending the lead to 3-0.
Garwood continued her stellar performance in goal, recording four impressive second-half saves to secure the shutout.
With the victory, Carey advances to the SSAC Championship final, where it will face either Life University or UT Southern. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Emory Folmar YMCA Complex.
