GREENWOOD, S.C. — Saturday was an uncharacteristic day for the No. 2-ranked Flagler College women's soccer team.
Lander University netted a pair of first half-goals to take the one-goal lead, and even though the Saints pressed to knot it up in the final 45 minutes, the Bearcats held on to upend Flagler, 2-1, in the Peach Belt Conference match at Van Taylor Stadium.
"Lander played a magnificent match today," Flagler head coach
Ashley Martin said. "We struggled to get a hold on the game, and although we threw everything we had at them, we couldn't find the equalizer."
The regular-season loss marks the first for Flagler (6-1-0, 4-1-0 PBC) since 2018 when the Saints fell to Lander (5-3-1, 3-1-0) by the same score in Greenwood, S.C, on Oct. 20, 2018.
In the 20th minute, Flagler was the first on the board when
Josefine Nilsen's cross into the box was knocked in by a Bearcat, with
Jess Leach on her heels. Lander knotted the score at 1-all when Emma Sexton scored her first — via Kaitlyn Thompson — in the 31st minute.
Sexton found the back of the net again, coming in the 40th minute, and proved to be enough to secure the win even with Flagler out-shooting the Bearcats in the second half, 11-5.
Up Next: The Saints wrap up their three-game road trip and step outside of conference play with a matchup at Embry-Riddle Wednesday at 7 p.m.
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