CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Campbell University women's soccer team opened up the 2017 campaign on Friday at the College of Charleston, with the Camels (0-1-0) falling, 1-0, to the Cougars (1-0-0).
"I'm so proud of the girls," said head coach
Samar Azem. "We played like we were the veteran team tonight. We saw an experienced team tonight and here we are as a younger team getting our legs under us."
Azem continued, "Our players were very smart with what we wanted to accomplish tactically. We were able to take away some of the wide passes that would have exposed us otherwise."
The Cougars' sole goal came from sophomore forward Alyssa Beck. The Fighting Camels recorded seven shots to CofC's five shots, including four on frame, but none could quite find the back of the net. CU's keepers performed well in the season opener, with
Erin Scott notching four saves and
Natalya Marcove saving one.
Campbell's first-year players gained a lot of key experience in the season opener, as six out of the seven newcomers played in the game. In addition, freshmen
Taylor Koester,
Abby Major,
Hanna Maansson and transfer Scott got the start in their first game as a Fighting Camel.
"Our older kids are doing such a great job of integrating our younger kids. They have done such a great job that the learning curve hasn't been as steep for them. [The first-years] have stepped up and understood that we are going to require a lot out of them in certain places. I was really happy with some of the younger kids coming in and reading the game very well tactically and making decisions in a high pace game the right way," said Azem.
CU's defense held strong in the early portion of the first half, when the back line fended off three consecutive corner kicks by the College of Charleston within the first 10 minutes of action. CofC recorded its first shot in the 26th minute of play, and Scott recorded her first career save as a Fighting Camel. The Cougars managed to break through the CU defense in the 33rd minute, scoring off an unassisted shot from the left corner of the box by Beck.
"The goal we gave up was a little bit of a younger mistake on our part. The good news about that is that's fixable," said Azem.
Kylee Arno had Campbell's best scoring chance of the first half, as she recorded two straight shots from just a few yards out. Arno received the ball at the top of the box and charged towards the goal, but CofC's keeper managed to block the first attempt and save the second. The Camel defense fended off two corner kicks in the final minutes of the first half to keep the College of Charleston's lead at one goal headed into the break.
The Fighting Camels showed a lot of energy in the second half of play, as CU notched five shots over the course of the frame.
Alexa Genas had two early chances, getting shots off in the first five minutes of play. Marcove had a key diving save to the left side of the goal in the 61st minute of action to keep the deficit at one and give the Camels an opportunity for an equalizer.
Campbell played aggressively in the final 20 minutes of action at the Patriots Point Athletics Complex, earning two corner kicks and recording three shots. In the 78th minute, Koester cranked a shot just wide of the goal off a corner kick by Major. Genas and
Shelby Denkert registered shots in the final five minutes of play, but both were fended off by the Cougar defense.
"For us, this is a great place moving forward. We told ourselves that this is going to be a learning experience for us as coaches to know our team. When they step on a field after receiving the amount of information that they did, the players are either going to run with it or they are going to struggle. Our girls ran with it more than I even thought that they could," said Azem.
Campbell will return to action on Sun., Aug. 20 for its home opener versus the Appalachian State Mountaineers. The game is scheduled to get underway at 4 p.m. at the Eakes Athletic Complex in Buies Creek. For the latest updates about Campbell women's soccer, make sure to follow @GoCamelsWSOC on Twitter.
