SAINT LEO, Fla. (November 6, 2011) -
Rollins was denied its second Sunshine State Conference
Tournament Championship Sunday, falling to Tampa 2-0 in the title
game at Saint Leo.
Rollins drops to 14-2-2 on the season and is a lock for a place
in the NCAA Division II South Region Tournament. The Tars entered
the weekend ranked second with the top six teams earning bids. The
official announcement is slated for 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 7 on
NCAA.com.
The first half was played to a stalemate with the Tars recording
three shots and holding Tampa (13-5-2) to just a pair of looks. The
battle was in the midfield with both teams limiting the others
chances.
The Spartans broke the scoreless tie in the 66th
minute as Tars' keeper Michelle Dillingham stopped a Marta Bertsos shot, but
the ball trickled away to Courtney Peffley for the score.
Rollins nearly scored the equalizer in the 75th
minute, but an Anita Cox try sailed wide left in a strong
tailwind.
Tampa closed the door on Rollins in the 83rd minute
when a Bertsos corner kick slipped through Dillingham's hands and
Lauren Moore found the ball amongst the scramble and put it in the
back of the net for a 2-0 UT lead.
The Tars couldn't crack the scoreboard in the final frantic
minutes and suffered just their second loss of the season.
Rollins racked up eight shots to seven for the Spartans.
Dillingham earned three saves and allowed the two goals while her
counterpart Emelie Karstrom didn't record a save in the shutout
effort.
Ashley Waplinger, Azure Dorsey and Allie Holly were named to the SSC All-Tournament
team.
Should Rollins remain in the top-two of the final NCAA Division
II South Region rankings, they would earn hosting duties and a
first round bye. Complete regional information will be posted on
RollinsSports.com when available.
