PULASKI, Tenn. — In a matchup featuring two of the top teams in the Southern States Athletic Conference, the No. 18 University of Tennessee Southern women's soccer team delivered a statement performance Thursday night, defeating No. 10 William Carey 3-1 at Grissom Pitch.
The victory improved the Firehawks to 12-1-1 overall and a perfect 10-0 in SSAC play while handing William Carey its first conference loss of the season. With the result, UT Southern moved into sole possession of first place in the conference standings.
a { text-decoration: none; color: #464feb; } tr th, tr td { border: 1px solid #e6e6e6; } tr th { background-color: #f5f5f5; } The win also ended one of the most remarkable streaks in conference history. William Carey had not suffered a regular-season SSAC loss since Oct. 28, 2017, when Mobile defeated the Crusaders 4-1 in Hattiesburg.
The opening half was a tightly contested battle between two nationally ranked programs. William Carey applied pressure early and finished with 11 first-half shots, but freshman goalkeeper Sam De Gier repeatedly came up with key saves to keep the match scoreless.
UT Southern found its breakthrough in the 40th minute when Mia Saum slipped a pass to Kamilia Tayebi, who finished for her 12th goal of the season and a 1-0 Firehawk lead heading into halftime.
The visitors appeared to have found an equalizer early in the second half, but the goal was disallowed due to an offensive handball in the buildup. William Carey continued to push forward and eventually leveled the match in the 53rd minute to make it 1-1.
The tie lasted just 50 seconds.
Immediately following the restart, Ashanti Lewis delivered a pass into the box to Luella Cramer, who buried her ninth goal of the season to restore the Firehawks' advantage at 2-1. The quick response swung momentum back in favor of UT Southern and energized the Grissom Pitch crowd.
William Carey continued to press throughout the second half, finishing with 29 shots and eight corner kicks. The Firehawk defense bent but never broke, led by another outstanding performance from De Gier.
UT Southern added an insurance goal in the 71st minute. After making a save moments earlier, De Gier launched a long ball forward that found Cramer behind the Crusader defense. Cramer finished for her second goal of the evening and a 3-1 Firehawk lead.
Although William Carey held advantages in shots (29-15) and corner kicks (8-3), UT Southern made the most of its opportunities and received a stellar effort from its goalkeeper. De Gier finished the night with nine saves and an assist, while Cramer recorded a brace and Tayebi added the opening goal.
Lewis, Saum, and De Gier each recorded assists as the Firehawks earned one of their biggest victories of the season.
The win extends UT Southern's unbeaten streak to 12 matches and places the Firehawks alone atop the SSAC standings heading into the final stretch of conference play.
Up Next
UT Southern returns to action Saturday when the Firehawks host Xavier (La.) at Grissom Pitch. The Gold Nuggets enter the weekend in second place in the SSAC standings with a 9-0-1 conference record and are one of only two teams in the league without a conference loss. The matchup features the top two teams in the current conference standings and carries significant implications in the race for the SSAC regular-season championship.
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