HIGH POINT, N.C. — Alex DePerno scored her first goal of the season Wednesday night as the High Point University women's soccer team played to a 1-1 draw with Big South Conference foe Radford University.
SITE: Vert Stadium
SCORE: High Point 1, Radford 1
RECORDS: High Point (3-3-5. 1-0-1), Radford (5-4-2, 1-0-1)
Head Coach Aaron McGuiness: "It was a good response from the weekend. As much as we won the game this past weekend, it wasn't our typical selves and that's what we asked of the team: to go back and play our game and to be in better defensive positions to be able to attack from those situations and they did that. I think for a good chunk of the game we had a greater run of play there. We out-shot them and moving forward we have to take care of business before we get into the tournament and to make sure we get there. Just take half by half, game by game and keep plugging away and when we do face them again, we'll know what we have to do."
Many knew this would be a nail-biter. Coming into this matchup, the Panthers and Highlanders were knotted at 14-all in wins apiece with a mere three ties in 31 games. The two teams added to the draw column.
The anticipated match was scoreless until the 41st minute when DePerno got a piece of a loose ball in the box that the Radford keeper punched out to save a
Lindsey DeHaven header, coming via the trusty
Emma Schossler on a corner kick. The Panthers edged the Highlanders in corners, 11 to five.
It was the senior captain's first goal of the season to put the Panthers ahead. But it wasn't long before Radford matched the goal on a cross into the box via Alexeis Kirnos as Ashley Loundermon leaped to head it into the right corner with 15 seconds remaining in the half.
"I think we could've done better tracking our runners," McGuiness said. "From that corner, we didn't mark up well. We flooded the area, trying to put pressure on the ball and they had players at the back post, and then we didn't do a good job when it went out for a throw-in. We looked at that at half time and talked to the players about it. They understood what was required and from there, we did a better job in the corners in what they did have."
HPU held the possession 61 percent of the match, firing off 19 shots to the Highlanders' 12 with one more on target (eight). The Panthers had multiple second-half chances but none better than one from
Skyler Prillaman Shults in the final eight minutes.
The graduate student, who is in her second game back after a season-ending injury a year ago, sent a rocket from beyond the box as it hit the cross bar and hit the goal line. The keeper Lexi Radvanyi, who had seven saves, swatted it away in what at first seemed like a HPU goal before the referees signaled no goal.
It was the second shot on goal for Shults, while DePerno also had a pair on target.
Ellyn Casto collected six saves and had two diving saves in each half to keep the draw intact.
Up Next: The Panthers head to Presbyterian College for a Saturday matchup, beginning at 2 p.m. in Clinton, S.C.
#GoHPU
