WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Sophomore
Molly McGarry converted a penalty kick with 5:13 remaining in the first overtime period as UNCW kept its hopes of earning a Colonial Athletic Association Tournament berth alive with a 4-3 overtime victory over Towson at UNCW Soccer Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The win snapped a three-game losing skid for the Seahawks while elevating their record to 9-6-0 overall and 3-5-0 in the CAA. Towson, meanwhile, saw its season come to an end with a 4-12-3 overall record and a 1-6-2 mark against league foes.
McGarry, who scored a goal with two assists, gave the Seahawks the instant win when she netted her second penalty kick of the season into the upper right corner after junior
Dominique Martinez was fouled inside the penalty area.
Towson took an early 1-0 lead in the fourth minute when junior Christiana Davey took a pass from freshman Jenna Blank and scored her first goal of the season.
But, UNCW responded by scoring three consecutive goals for a 3-1 advantage with 33:27 left in regulation. After redshirt junior
Kirsten Bootes scored on a rebound of a McGarry shot in the sixth minute, the Seahawks took a 2-1 lead with 4:17 left in the first half when sophomore
Audrey Harding blasted a 30-yard shot into the upper right corner of the goal.
Just over 11 minutes into the second half, junior
Ashley Johnson knocked in a loose ball that bounced around inside the penalty area for her third goal of the season, giving UNCW a two-goal edge.
Blank trimmed the deficit to 3-2 with 29:00 remaining in regulation after making a long run to take a shot that slipped past sophomore goalkeeper
Sydney Schneider into the lower left corner.
Freshman midfielder Olivia Ramirez evened the score at 3-3 with 1:00 left when she took a pass from senior forward Evelyn Neidert and scored the first goal of her college career, sending the game into overtime.
Schneider made four saves for the Seahawks after entering the game at halftime in place of senior
Caitie Broderick, who tallied two saves.
Collins, playing the final game of her college career, recorded two saves for Towson, which outshot UNCW by a slim 11-10 margin.
Up Next: The Seahawks close out the regular season on Tuesday, Oct. 23, when Elon visits UNCW Soccer Stadium for a 7 p.m. CAA contest. A win over the Phoenix gives UNCW a berth in the CAA Championship field for the third time in four years.
