ws-cloud defense-16
Katie Cloud races to beat a couple Wingate players to the ball.
0
Wingate WU (0-0-1)
0
Lee University LU (0-0-1)
Wingate WU
(0-0-1)
0
Final
0
Lee University LU
(0-0-1)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 OT 1 OT 2 F
Wingate WU 0 0 0 0 0
Lee University LU 0 0 0 0 0

Game Recap: Women's Soccer | | Director of Sports Information

Women's Soccer Battles in 2-OT Scoreless Tie



COLUMBUS, Ga. - Lee women's soccer coach Chris Hennessey made it perfectly clear that his club did not come to Columbus State and drop their opening game of the season.

For the past five seasons, the Lady Flames had lost a season-opener and were forced to battle back to get out of the ratings hole. "Our main objective was not to lose," said Hennessey after his club battled a big, strong Wingate University team for 110 minutes and a 0-0, two overtime draw.

"I'm proud of the effort our ladies gave today," said the Lee head coach. "Wingate has a very good squad and this was an extremely physical match. A tie against a well-coached team like this is not going to hurt us when we start looking at the region rankings at the end of the year."

Hennessey admitted that his club is still working on generating chemistry on the offensive end. "That's going to come," he added. "You saw two of the better goalkeepers in action this afternoon and neither defense was willing to give an inch."

The Bulldogs outshot the Lady Flames 15-11 but placed only five on target. Lee took 11 shots and six were on goal. However, Wingate keeper Alexis Jones was there to save all six attempts. On the other side, Lee's Haley Gribler turned back all five Bulldog shots on goal.

The evenly played match saw each team awarded six corner kicks. Wingate held the upper hand in that department in the first half (5), while the Lady Flames had only one corner kick in the opening 45 minutes. Lee turned the situation around in the second 45 with four corners to just one for Wingate.

The Lee coach praised the defensive effort of Gribler and also singled out Katie Cloud. However, he praised the overall defensive effort of his entire squad.

The Lady Flames will get a day to rest after the long grinding battle but they must come back against another strong opponent in 10th-rated Bellarmine University (Ky.) on Sunday at 11:30.

"They are another well-coached team but they will try to possess the ball a little more than Wingate did," added Hennessey. "They are not 10th in the nation for no reason."

 
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