2011 Women's Soccer Team Notes (Nov. 1)

   Armstrong Atlantic State (12-2-3, 9-0-1) --  The No. 18-ranked Armstrong Atlantic State University soccer squad clinched the 2011 Peach Belt Conference regular season title with a 1-1 draw at No. 11 North Georgia on Saturday in the Pirates' final action of the regular season ... Kristina Pascutti tallied the Pirates' only goal, her 11th of the season and the 26th of her career, passing Shana Neves (25) for third on the Armstrong all-time goal scoring chart ... The Pirates are the top seed in the 2011 PBC Tournament and will host Georgia College in a first-round matchup on Tuesday ... Armstrong hosted GC in the Pirates' first PBC Tournament contest back in 2005, the inaugural year of the program, and won 7-1 over the Bobcats. The Pirates have made every PBC Tournament semifinals since beginning its program in 2005 ... Armstrong would face the winner of Lander/Flagler on Friday in the PBC Semifinals should the Pirates win on Tuesday ... Armstrong won the 2009 PBC Tournament title and has made two other championship match appearances, in 2006 and 2007.
 
 Clayton State (9-6-2, 4-4-2) --  The shutout fever continued for the Clayton State Lakers last week as they concluded the regular season with two more - a 1-0 double-overtime thriller over Alabama-Huntsville on Wednesday and a 2-0 decision over USC Aiken on Saturday... This gives the Lakers now 10 shutouts on the season, tying the team single-season mark first set by the 2005 Clayton State squad... The two victories also put Clayton State 9-6-2 overall, guaranteeing the Lakers their first winning season since 2007... Silvia Espelt won the game for the Lakers in double-overtime against Alabama-Huntsville with a penalty kick in the 104th minute, while Natalia Valentine recorded two first-half goals against USC Aiken... Junior goalkeeper Laoise O'Driscoll recorded her eighth and ninth shutouts of the season, and she has allowed only two goals in her last 874 minutes... Valentine is tied for third in the Peach Belt in both goals scored (11) and points scored (24), while junior defender Dior McGruder is tied for third in assists with five... Defensively, O'Driscoll is ranked second in the Peach Belt in saves with 85, and fifth in goals-against average (0.86)... Clayton State head coach Gareth O'Sullivan has recorded the most victories in his initial season out of any head coach in Clayton State women's soccer history... Clayton State is seeded seventh in this week's Peach Belt Conference Tournament, and the Lakers will travel to No. 11 North Georgia for the first round on Wednesday.
 
 Columbus State (13-3-2, 7-2-1) -- The Lady Cougars played one of their finest games of the season to wrap-up the 2011 regular season defeating Montevallo by a score of 4-0 last Wednesday (10/26) evening…CSU got things started quickly as Kiana Nicholson netted a goal less than four minutes into the game…The freshman would add two more goals in the first half to register her first hat trick at Columbus State…Jackie Ellis would cap off the scoring in the match late in the second half…CSU outshot the Lady Falcons 22-3 and held a 6-1 edge in corner kicks…The Lady Cougars are currently riding a seven game winning streak heading into the PBC Tournament where they will face off with No. 6 seed UNC Pembroke…UNCP defeated Columbus State early in the regular season 1-0 in overtime on a goal in the 98th minute…During CSU’s winning streak, nine different players have scored during the span…Columbus State has also outscored their opponents by a 21-4 margin and recorded four shutouts during the streak…The winner of No. 3 Columbus State and No. 6 UNCP will head to Blanchard Woods Park on Friday, November 4 for a semifinal matchup between the winner of No. 2 North Georgia and No. 7 Clayton State…Columbus State defeated both teams during the regular season.

Flagler (9-7-1, 5-4-1) --  Flagler went 2-0 this week with both wins coming against Peach Belt Conference competition. The Saints finished with a 5-4-1 record in the league, its first winning record since joining the conference in 2009. Flagler is the No. 5 seed and will head to No. 4 seed Lander on Tuesday in the PBC Tournament quarterfinal. Both team tied for fourth place, Flagler's best finish in its stint in the league. Loren Cate led the team with four goals and an assist for nine points. Of Flagler's seven goals scored last week, Cate had a hand in five of them. Lindsay Zullo scored a pair of goals (both against Georgia College) and added an assist. Cristina Coca pitched a pair of shutouts last week bringing her tally to three shutouts this season (which are all in a row). She saved seven shots last week.
   Georgia College (5-13, 4-6) -- The Bobcats split two conference games this week, clobbering USC Aiken Wednesday 6-0 and dropping a 5-0 match Saturday at Flagler ... The Bobcats have been within one goal in 10 of the team's 13 losses ... The Bobcats hosted three-straight nationally ranked opponents losing to #13 North Georgia, #18 Armstrong and #11 Rollins in consecutive one-goal matches ... In the 4-0 victory over Montevallo Sept. 20, Ashley Veilleux had two goals and an assist, the first five point game for a Bobcat since 2008 ... The six goals Oct. 26 were the second most for the Bobcats in school history ... The Bobcats have clinched a spot in the 2011 PBC Tournament, as the No. 8-seed ... GC travels to No. 1-seed Armstrong Tuesday at 2 p.m. ... Catch the action with audio broadcasts at www.UStream.tv/GCBobcats.
   Georgia Southwestern (3-15, 0-10) -- The Lady Hurricanes dropped a pair of PBC home matches last week to wrap up the 2011 season. GSW lost to Flagler, 2-0, on Wednesday before suffering a heartbreaking 2-1 double-overtime setback against Montevallo on Saturday afternoon...Senior Brittney Hill scored the Lady 'Canes lone goal of the week, giving GSW an early 1-0 advantage against UM...The goal by Hill puts her in a tie for the all-time career scoring lead in program history...GSW goalkeeper Amber Bahri made 10 saves in 170 minutes of action last week and moved up a spot to third in the PBC with 77 stops this season...Southwestern recognized its four seniors at halftime against UM. Hill, Nicole Hudson (leaves with the most starts in school history), Katie Mueller and Hanah Swinson wrapped up their collegiate careers on Saturday.
  Lander (12-4-1, 5-4-1) --   Lander, in it's only game played last week, dropped a 4-1 PBC contest at UNC Pembroke on Saturday in both teams' regular-season finale. The four goals by UNCP was the most scored against Lander this season. With 12 victories, Lander needs just one more to tie the school-record for wins in a season. Lander already has set a school record for shutouts in a season with 10. In PBC statistics, Christina Barbour is first in assists (8), third in points (24) and sixth in goals scored (8); Jamie Shaw is fourth in goals scored (9) and eighth in points (20); and goalkeeper Chelsea Beetch is sixth in goals against average (0.95) and seventh in saves (52).
Montevallo (6-11-1, 3-6-1) --  The Falcons went 1-1 in the final week of the season as they fell just one spot short of postseason play. UM opened the week with a 4-0 loss to Columbus State on the road and then won 2-1 in double overtime on the road at Georgia Southwestern. Sophomore Christine Prince scored the Falcons double-overtime winner for her eighth goal of the season and third game-winner. She ends the season as the overall points leader for the Falcons with eight goals and one assist. Sophomore Taylor Kerr led the team with four assists. Sophomore Kaitlin Thomas got the lions share of time in goal for the Falcons where she recorded a 1.34 GAA and a 6-6-0 record with one shutout. Junior Alyssa Maxwell also played 11 matches in goal including six starts and she had a 2.20 GAA with an 0-5-1 record.
North Georgia (14-1-1, 8-1-1) --   The North Georgia women’s soccer team ended the regular season with a win over Anderson on Senior Day and a hard fought 1-1 tie with Armstrong Atlantic in a crucial Peach Belt Conference battle. The deadlock with the Pirates left the Lady Saints in sole possession of second place heading to the PBC Tournament. After falling behind early against Armstrong, the Lady Saints rallied in the second half and Emily Dover came up big in the 80th minute when Kelly Penston played a perfect ball in the box to the senior to knot the score at 1-1. For Dover, the Canton, Georgia, native ended the regular season and the PBC leader in goals with 14 and set a North Georgia record for the most goals in a single season. As the No. 2 seed, North Georgia will now play host to 7th-seeded Clayton State in the opening round of the PBC Tournament, with the winner advancing to Evans, Georgia over the weekend for the Final Four.
 
 UNC Pembroke (9-4-3, 4-4-2) --  The UNCP Lady Braves (9-5-3, 4-4-2 PBC) went 1-1 last week with a 1-0 loss at Catawba on Tuesday in overtime and a 4-1 win over Lander on Saturday at Varsity Grounds in Pembroke. Saturday’s win clinched the sixth seed in the upcoming PBC Tournament for UNCP and they will face Columbus State on Tuesday at the Walden Soccer Complex in Columbus, Ga. Freshman Amalia Arvidsson led the team during the week with three goals in the Lady Braves’ 4-1 win over Lander on Saturday for her first career hat trick. It was the third time this year a member of the squad has recorded three goals in one game - joining Andrea Collèn and Frankie Berscak as the other two players to accomplish the feat. Sophomore Britney Bennett posted a 0.98 goals against average on the week as well as a .818 saves percentage and nine saves in over 183 minutes in goal. Collèn and Arvidsson are currently tied for the team lead with 19 points apiece, and Arvidsson overtook Collèn as the squad's leading goal scorer with three on Saturday. The rookie midfielder has eight goals and three assists while Collèn has seven goals and five assists. Britney Bennett holds a 0.69 goals against average on the season, which is third in the PBC among goalkeepers with at least 10 starts. She also leads the conference with 92 saves and a .885 save percentage in over 1,557 minutes in goal.

USC Aiken (4-12, 1-9) --  The University of South Carolina Aiken women's soccer team closed out its 2011 season last week with two matches ... USC Aiken opened its week by falling, 6-0, to Georgia College in its final road match of the year on Wednesday, Oct. 26 ... The Pacers fell 2-0 to Clayton State in their final home match of the year on Saturday, Oct. 29 ... USC Aiken honored lone senior Megan Killmeyer (Fort Mill, S.C./Fort Mill) prior to the Clayton State match ... USC Aiken finished its season with an overall record of 4-12 ... The Pacers were 1-9 in Peach Belt Conference action in the 2011 season.