The University of North Georgia women’s soccer team fought hard Thursday in a 1-1 draw at home against conference rival Flagler. With the draw, the Nighthawks move to 6-1-1 on the year, with a still unbeaten 2-0-1 record in Peach Belt Conference play.
Thursday marked the team’s second game in 19 days due to hurricane cancelations and postponements. The Flagler match originally scheduled for Nov. 2 was moved up to help both teams schedule-wise later in the season.
Despite the break, UNG came out firing. Freshmen midfielder Nina Lopez got off three shots in the first six minutes to put initial pressure on the Saints’ defense. With the defenders on their toes, senior midfielder Darby Olive capitalized in the 12th minute. Junior forward Bailey Oetinger hit a pass to Olive running up to the box, who then proceeded to cut through two defenders before putting the ball in the back of the net giving the Nighthawks a 1-0 lead.
“When I saw Bailey flick the ball, I knew I could get in the box and score. It was weird because I only have one goal this year, but I just knew before the game that I was going to score.” – Darby Olive, UNG senior midfielder
The lead was short lived as Flagler three-time PBC player of the year, Andrea Fernandez, got behind the Nighthawk defense, winning a one-on-one with the goalie for the equalizer 21 minutes in. The Nighthawks embraced the challenge of facing Fernandez holding her to just one shot attempt after the early goal.
“Intensity and adrenaline definitely go up,” junior midfielder Alex Clark said. “She’s a good player; that is very technical on the ball, so you just have to hold your feet, not stab at the ball and not get nervous. She is quick so you want to anticipate the ball and always know where she is. You must be mentally locked in the whole game.”
The draw stood into halftime.
UNG controlled the second half despite not being able to score again. Defense ended up being the anchor to preserve the 1-1 score for the game.
“We came together at halftime to talk about ways we could capitalize better in the second half,” senior defender Mychael Fruits said. “We saw where we broke down and tried to come out and eliminate that, like their crossers. Prior to the game, we knew Fernandez would be a player to man mark considering she is the leading goal scorer. Alex Clark did a great job shutting her down without giving up any fouls.”
The Nighthawks will return home for Senior Night on Saturday, Oct. 19 against PBC opponent Georgia Southwestern.
