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By:
Stephen Williams
DAHLONEGA, Ga. – The ninth-ranked Columbus State University women's soccer team made three first-half goals stand up for a 3-2 victory at No. 8 North Georgia on Wednesday night. The Peach Belt Conference match was played at the UNG Soccer Complex.
The victory is the sixth straight for the Lady Cougars over the Nighthawks, all spanning the last three seasons. All six matches have been won by one goal.
"This was another classic match between two of the premier teams in the region," said CSU head coach
Jay Entlich. "I felt we had some things to prove after last week's road loss, but the girls answered the call and were in very good form.
"We still have plenty to work on and can't wait to get back to town to train."
Columbus State (5-1-0, 2-0-0 PBC) came out firing on offense as
Brooke Nail and
Hugrun Elvarsdottir each launched balls over the cross bar in the first five minutes. The two sides spent the next 10 minutes trading possession before the Lady Cougars finally struck.
Cassandra Wade dribbled around the left side before dropping a pass back to
Mandy Janowitz. The senior spun around at the top left corner of the box and blasted a perfect shot into the upper right corner of the net for the game's first tally. It was the third goal of the season for Janowitz.
With nearly 20 minutes to play in the first half, North Georgia (3-1-1, 1-1-0) nearly evened the match.
Maylyn Parsons made three excellent saves on consecutive shots to keep the goose egg on the scoreboard.
The Nighthawks wouldn't remain scoreless for much longer though. Jacy Ramey tapped home a cross with 15 minutes left in the half to tie the match at one.
CSU answered back with a flurry. Less than five minutes later, it was Janowitz creating as she dribbled in from the right side. Her centering pass found the foot of
Flo Spano, and the reigning National Player of the Week hammered it into the right side to put the Lady Cougars back in front. The goal was Spano's fourth of the last two matches.
Following a North Georgia foul, Columbus State found an insurance goal in the 38
th minute.
Amanda Murphy played the ball into the box where Spano one-touched it to
Taylor Marks. Marks kept her shot low and tucked it just inside the far post for her first goal of the season.
UNG didn't go away quietly though. The Nighthawks had a dangerous chance with 16 minutes remaining, but Parsons was once again up to the challenge. North Georgia finally cut the lead in half with under six minutes to go. Sophia Matonak finished off her first goal of the season to amplify the pressure.
However, Columbus State was able to hang on the rest of the way to earn the huge road victory.
Parsons made a season-high eight saves on the night to earn her fifth win of the year in goal.
Columbus State continues conference play on Saturday with a road match at UNC Pembroke. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
