ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The Flagler College women's soccer team (7-5-5 overall, 5-2-2 PBC) opened postseason play Saturday afternoon with a 3-1 victory over Lander (7-4-5 overall, 2-3-4 PBC) in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament quarterfinals. The third-seeded Saints received a pair of second-half goals from freshmen
Netanya Brown and
Eleanora Close to secure their spot in the semifinals.
SCORING SUMMARY
7' – Flagler –
Ella Gembicki (Penalty Kick)
32' – Lander – Angele Hills (Unassisted)
73' – Flagler –
Netanya Brown (Assist:
Eleanora Close)
79' – Flagler –
Eleanora Close (Assist:
Netanya Brown)
TURNING POINT
Flagler struck first by capitalizing on an early penalty kick.
Irina Barron-Gomez sent a long ball behind the Bearcats' backline, where senior
Anastasia Whitehouse won the race to the ball before being fouled by the Lander goalkeeper inside the box. Junior
Ella Gembicki stepped up and converted the penalty to give the Saints a 1-0 lead in the seventh minute.
Lander answered in the 32nd minute when Angele Hills received a pass near midfield, advanced toward goal, and fired a shot into the left corner to even the score at 1-1 heading into halftime.
The Saints regained the lead in the 73rd minute behind a connection between freshmen
Eleanora Close and
Netanya Brown. Close drove down the right side of the box before sending a cross toward the front of goal, where Brown redirected it with a header past the goalkeeper and into the left side of the net.
The duo struck again just six minutes later, this time reversing roles. Brown collected a pass near midfield, turned toward goal, and threaded a through ball behind the Bearcats' defense. Close used her speed to get behind the backline and beat the goalkeeper one-on-one to extend the Saints' lead to 3-1.
Flagler's defense held firm over the final 11 minutes to preserve the victory and punch its ticket to the PBC Tournament semifinals.
KEY STATS & NOTES
- First Team All-PBC selection Ella Gembicki scored her fourth goal of the season and led the Saints with three shots in 90 minutes.
- Netanya Brown made the most of her 21 minutes off the bench, recording her third goal of the season and adding an assist.
- Eleanora Close also contributed three points off the bench, recording her first career goal and assist.
- Haley Stafford, Avery Raimondo, and Ava Scott each added a shot.
- Six Saints played all 90 minutes, including Brooke Rienecker, Presley Ancheta, Avery Raimondo, Ella Gembicki, Keali Foster, and Irina Barron-Gomez.
- Freshman goalkeeper Irina Barron-Gomez made her 17th start of the season and recorded three saves while allowing one goal.
- Lander held a 16-8 advantage in shots, while both teams put five attempts on target.
- Flagler recorded seven corner kicks, tying for its second-highest single-game total this season.
- The victory marks Flagler's eighth consecutive appearance in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament semifinals.
UP NEXT
Flagler travels to face second-seeded North Georgia on Wednesday, Nov. 4, in the PBC Tournament semifinals. Kickoff time is still to be determined. Live video coverage will be available on a pay-per-view basis for $10. Tickets will be available through Hometown Ticketing and can be purchased
here once they become available.
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