College of Charleston
Hofstra
CofC W. Soccer Stunned in Overtime Loss to Hofstra
9/29/2013 8:52:00 PM | Women's Soccer
LONG ISLAND, N.Y. – Back-to-back second-half goals by Francesca Kentimenos and Sarah Cardamone had the College of Charleston women's soccer team in prime position to pick up their first-ever Colonial Athletic Association victory, but an eventual hat trick by Hofstra's Sam Scolarici allowed the defending CAA-champion Pride to escape with a 3-2 overtime victory at the HU Soccer Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
After falling behind early, CofC's (2-9, 0-2 CAA) goals in quick succession gave them a 2-1 lead in the second half, a lead they'd hold until the 87th minute.
“Hofstra is a very good team and extremely well coached and organized,” said head coach Christian Michner. “We were under the gun in the first half for sure and perhaps fortunate to go in to the break down just 1-0. That gave us momentum and confidence in the second half and we were very good once we had that.
“We scored two unbelievable goals to put us up 2-1 and were four minutes from winning a huge game, away, at the conference champions. We can take away a lot of positive things. We're disappointed with the results but we know we can compete with anybody moving forward.”
The Pride came out heavy on the attack, resulting in a 9-1 first-half shot advantage and a 20th minute goal when Scolarici netted one from the top-left corner of the box. Tara Kerns registered an assist on the play.
As Michner mentioned, the halftime deficit could have been much worse if not for five first half saves by Cougar goalkeeper Taylor Avery (Clifton, Va.). Avery finished the match with a career-high eight saves.
The Cougars shifted the tide in the second period and became the more attack-oriented team, closing the shot margin to a more-balanced 19-10 by game's end.
Kentimenos' (Stony Point, N.Y.) first goal of the season equalized the match when the sophomore bent a brilliant ball with the outside of her right foot in the 56th minute. Her slicing ball bent around the defensive wall and froze the Hofstra goalkeeper on its way to the top right corner.
Just a few minutes later, Cardamone (Downingtown, Pa.) ran the ball into the offensive third of the field and dribbled through the defense before slotting it past the keeper to give the Cougars a sudden 2-1 lead.
The Cougars clung to the lead until there was one second less than four minutes remaining in the match and Scolarici netted her second. The equalizer found the right corner of the net after Jeannine Molleda set the play up.
As the match carried into overtime, Scolarici found herself one-on-one with Avery in the 94th minute. Avery charged at her as a last-ditch effort, but Scolarici was able to use the space to her advantage for the game winner, her league-high 13th of the year.
The Cougars return home and look to bounce back with another league game against Towson on Sunday, Oct. 6. Kickoff from Patriots Point is slated for 1 p.m.
