WILMINGTON, North Carolina – UNCW's hopes of securing the final berth in the Colonial Athletic Association Women's Soccer Championship were dashed in heartbreaking fashion on Tuesday evening as the Seahawks earned a 2-2 draw against Elon in the regular season finale for both teams at UNCW Soccer Stadium.
The Seahawks, who needed a win to earn the sixth seed in the tournament, saw its season close with a 9-6-1 overall record and a 3-5-1 mark in the CAA. Elon, which finished the season in 10th place in the CAA standings, end the year at 3-10-4 overall and 1-7-1 in the CAA.
Junior
Baley Edwards' first career two-goal performance lifted the Seahawks to a 2-0 lead. She headed in a pass from freshman
Carey Allard in the 33rd minute before adding her second marker off an assist from sophomore
Molly McGarry just under 10 minutes into the second half.
But, Elon scored twice in a 12-minute span to even the score at 2-2. After senior Tori Balliatico netted her second goal of the year on an unassisted tally in the 56th minute, the Phoenix tied the game with 22:06 left in regulation when redshirt sophomore Hannah Doherty blasted a free kick from just beyond the top of the penalty area into the upper right corner.
UNCW registered all three shots in the extra periods, but were unable to score the game-winning goal.
The Seahawks outshot Elon by a 10-6 margin, but the Phoenix had a 9-3 advantage in corner kicks.
