FAYETTEVILLE, NC. — Appearing in the program's first conference championship, the Southern Virginia University Women's Volleyball took on Methodist University on the road. After 90 minutes, the Monarchs were too much, taking down the Knights 3-1.
Ten minutes into the game, Methodist got on the board first, having luck on their side as a deflected cross landed in front of Tatiana Lourenco-Shiber, who quickly dished it over to Laura Harris, sneaking it past Alyssa Trueman.
One minute later, a foul by the Monarchs set up a free kick outside the left side of the box, with Gabriella Ray being called to take the shot. After the whistle, Ray curved the ball far right, and snuck it inside the goalpost, evening the game at one.
Methodist were presented with two more scoring opportunities, but Trueman stood tall recording two of her eight saves to keep the score knotted at one. The tied game did not long last after, with Tatiana Lourenco-Shiber scoring her first goal of the game off an assist from Corrine Shovlain. The teams went into the halftime break with the Monarchs clinging to a one-goal game, 2-1.
Southern Virginia's offense struggled getting together to create scoring opportunities, only being able to get two shots off in the second half. Methodist fired five shots, with four on goal, at the Knights' defense, but Alyssa Trueman made four incredible saves to keep the team in contention of victory.
The Monarchs solidified their victory in the 85
th minute after the Knights fouled within the box, setting up Methodist with a penalty kick. Corrine Shovlain took the shot for the team, putting it in the back of the net, and pushing the team to a 3-1 lead.
The final whistle blew, and Methodist captured the program's third championship, and first since 2017, punching their ticket to the NCAA National Tournament.
For more updates and details on the women's soccer team, be sure to follow @knight_wsoc on Instagram and @knightwsoccer on Twitter and visit knightathletics.com for live stats and streaming options.
