Cougars edge Bobcats in a cat fight

In a hard-fought match, the GCSU women’s soccer team lost to Columbus State University, the first place team in the Peach Belt Conference, by a score of 1-0 last Wednesday night at Bobcat Field at West Campus.
The lone goal was scored by Gina Goforth, the leading goal-scorer in the PBC,  in the 28th minute on a breakaway pass from midfielder Kellie Myles.  The goal was Goforth’s ninth goal of the season and the first goal allowed by the Lady Bobcats at Bobcat Field all season.
“They timed the pass very well on the run to make sure she was onsides and Gina is an extremely good finisher,” Coach Robert Parr said. “We might have been able to read (the pass) a little better and get in front of (Goforth), but give them credit.”
After the goal, the Lady Bobcats’ defense was able to slow Columbus State’s offense and hold them to only one shot during the final 35 minutes of the match, which was impressive considering that Columbus State had scored a total of 29 goals in their previous 10 matches. 
Freshman defender Morgan Cobb believed that what made Columbus State such a challenge to stop defensively was their speed among their strikers and midfielders.
“We have played more aggressively offensive teams, but they have more speed and that is probably what caught us off guard,” Cobb said.
The Lady Bobcats did have their fair share of scoring chances, including a free kick that was taken by sophomore midfielder Hayley Ferrell in the 65th minute at the top of the penalty box.  However, Ferrell kicked the ball over the goal, which led to the second consecutive match in which the Lady Bobcats were shut out and the ninth shutout this season for Columbus State.
Columbus State came into the match on a seven-game winning streak, previously beating their opponents by a combined total score of 26-1. The Lady Bobcats can at least take solace in the fact that they are one of the few teams that was able to play with the top team in the PBC.
“Because they are ranked number one, and we are unranked, it’s pretty good that we held them to 1-0,” said senior midfielder Meredith Moran.
Coach Parr was more impressed with the way his team performed than at any other time this season, which includes an 8-0 victory over Erskine and a 5-0 win over Lander.
“Don’t let the score fool you, but that was the best team we played this year and that was the best soccer we played this year,” said Parr.
The loss dropped the Lady Bobcats to an overall record of 3-3-2 and a 1-2-2 record in the PBC.  After the Columbus State match, the Lady Bobcats had five points and were in fifth place in the conference.  Because they were able to give Columbus State a run for their money, Coach Parr believes that his team could soon be on the level of Columbus State.
“It was a good test for us, a good performance by us, and hopefully we maintain our intensity and move forward,” said Coach Parr.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Oct 6 2006. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry