GAINESVILLE, Ga - The Brenau University soccer team eagerly welcomed Belhaven University as soon as they stepped foot on the field. This match was the conference opener for the Blazers; however Brenau already had 3 SSAC matches under their belt.
The Golden Tigers used that game experience to shutout the Blazers 3-0, improving their overall record to 3-3-2 (3-1 in SSAC).
In the first half, no goals were scored; however, the second half heated up, seeing lots of action.
Coach Lochstampfor commented after the game, "I thought we came out very sluggish in the first half and quite honestly, to Belhaven's credit, they had us on the ropes for the first 20 minutes. We talked at half-time about getting more settled and improving our passing and movement. I'm proud of the team as they came back in the second half and executed. There were some individual efforts that particularly stood out not the least of which was Tori Brown's performance in goal. Hanna Martin again won a number of balls for us in the middle and put away a tremendous header from a Kirsty Smith corner kick. Hannah Norwood continues to keep us organized in the back. And, our 2 front-runners - Jenny Knibbs and Elizabeth Campbell - played a crucial role with their play up top and they both scored some very nice goals. To get another conference win is great and obviously to come out with another shut-out is even more crucial."
Brenau scored the first goal at the 20:55 mark in the second half. Freshman forward, Jenny Knibbs (Doncaster, England) scored the goal, with Elizabeth Campbell (Richmond Hill, GA) setting her up with an assist from a throw-in. The Golden Tigers led, 1-0.
The team anxiously awaited their chance to score another goal. Kirsty Smith (Doncaster, England) set up teammate Hannah Martin (Toccoa, GA) for the second Brenau goal when she served in a perfectly weighted corner kick for Martin to put away with the header.
Throughout the game, Brenau's goalkeeper Tori Brown (Windermere, FL) earned 8 saves, with no goals allowed, as opposed to Belhaven's goalie, who totaled 5 saves, with 3 goals allowed.
Belhaven outshot Brenau 17-15, but that had no bearing on the scoreboard. The Golden Tigers made their final goal by way of Elizabeth Campbell , with 8 minutes left in the game. The third goal secured their win and the Golden Tigers closed the game out by the final score of 3-0.
The Golden Tigers host another conference match, against William Carey, Tuesday, September 27th, @ 5:00pm.