WINTER PARK, Fla. (November 14, 2024) - Women's soccer allowed Nova Southeastern to score late in the second half, leading to a 3-2 loss for the Tars. Rollins, the #2 seed in the SSC tournament, now stands at 8-5-3. The Sharks improve to 6-5-3.
It didn't take long for Nova to jump on the board. In the sixth minute, Haley Mettrick found space inside the box, and was fed a perfect pass from Genesis Hernandez, leading to an easy goal.
The Sharks then extended their lead in the 19th minute when Alexa Bereczki somehow squeezed through a trio of Tar defenders, and came out with a full head of steam and an open look at the goal. Her shot found its way past
Lauren Mehos, putting the Sharks up 2-0.
Rollins woke up after the second score, and were on the board within ten minutes. Working up the left side,
Briyah Drayton spotted a streaking
Lizzie Hill. She placed a cross perfectly in stride, and Hill surprised the Shark keeper with a quick header that snuck past to cut the lead in half.
About a third of the way into the second half, the Tars found the goal again. After a defensive stand,
Blaire Pressley absolutely launched a lead pass, covering at least 50 yards on the kick.
Lexie Cooper was flying down the line, and managed to catch up with the ball. She quickly turned and sent a ball into the box where Hill was waiting to bounce it in off her upper leg to equalize.
Twenty minutes pass with little scoring opportunity. However, with under ten minutes to play, Bereczki put a shot on goal that was saved by Mehos, but ended up in front of Emma Sellden. The Swede put her foot on the ball, and knocked home the go ahead strike.
Rollins had one final strong chance with ten seconds to go, but
Briyah Drayton's shot was saved by Emilie Schroeder.
With the win, Nova Southeastern advances to the SSC championship against #1 seed Florida Tech. Rollins will have to play the waiting game and see if their name is called at the NCAA selection show on Monday, November 18th at 7 pm. In the latest Regional Rankings last Sunday, Rollins was the #6 team in the South.
