DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The 11th-ranked Embry-Riddle women's soccer team earned a win over Florida Southern on Thursday to advance to the championship game of the Sunshine State Conference tournament. The regular season match-up saw the Moccasins (9-7-3) edge the Blue and Gold 1-0 to give the Eagles their only loss of the season, but second-seeded Embry-Riddle turned the tables on the sixth-seeded Moccasins on Thursday, downing the visitors by the same score to advance.
The Eagles' semifinal win improves their overall record to 13-1-3 and puts them back in the conference tournament finale for the fourth year in a row.
Unlike the first meeting between the teams where a late Florida Southern goal was the difference, the Eagles claimed the lead early in the first half and kept possession for most of the contest to emerge victorious.
The game's only goal came in the 14th minute. The play started in the midfield with
Isabelle Navren taking the ball about 50 yards down the pitch before playing it out to
Lauryn Mateo on the right. Mateo's cross went out to the other side of the field where it was met by
Berglind Thrastardottir. The freshman sent a low cross into the box that eluded FSC goalkeeper Jenny Staten and fell to Navren who had continued her run and the senior tapped in her fifth goal of the season to put the Eagles up 1-0.
The Eagles continued to press to start the second half and at the 53-minute mark a counterattack led to a left-footed strike by Mateo that Staten struggled to hold on to. Following that chance, the momentum gradually shifted to the other side of the field culminating in a pair of shots by Jasmin Adames that forced ERAU netminder
Oona Jokinen to make saves.
While the Eagles had a 6-2 advantage in shots in the first 45 minutes, it was the Moccasins who held a 4-3 edge in the second half. However, neither team was able find the net resulting in the 1-0 final score.
Sunday's final will feature the same two teams from the last two years' title games. The Eagles will travel to Melbourne to face top-seeded Florida Tech. Game time is yet to be determined.
The 2023 Embry-Riddle women's soccer season is presented by Radiology Associates.
