Women's Soccer Knocks Off First-Place FGCU, 2-0

Friday, October 5

Jacksonville, Fla.

7 p.m.

University of North Florida

-562, 301 ASun

Florida Gulf Coast

-932, 410 ASun

Florida Gulf Coast

North Florida

Photo by: Todd Drexler

10/5/2012 9:16:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

By: UNF Athletics

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The University of North Florida women's soccer team used a pair of second half goals to grab a 2-0 win over Florida Gulf Coast on Friday evening at Hodges Stadium.

Florida Gulf Coast entered the match in first place in the Atlantic Sun Conference, with a 4-0 mark in conference play. The Eagles had also accumulated a 21-1-3 record over their last 25 A-Sun matches.

"We were able to finish our chances tonight against a really good team," Head Coach Linda Hamilton. "

The match was fast-paced throughout, as both teams traded multiple forays into the attacking third. Though there was no scoring in the first half, the teams accounted for 16 shots, with FGCU holding a slim 9-7 lead. Both teams put four shots on goal in the opening period.

In the second half, the Ospreys kept the offensive pressure on, tallying the first four shots after the break.

The third of those four shots broke the scoreless deadlock for UNF. After junior forward Lauren Hopfensperger dribbled into the attacking third, she found fellow junior Carolina Lencina with a short pass. Lencina avoided a defender at the top of the box and lofted a shot into the upper-right corner of the net to put the Ospreys up 1-0 in the 64th minute. It was Lencina's fifth goal of the season, equaling her mark from last year.

Despite the lead, UNF kept the pedal down, outshooting the Eagles 6-2 in the second period. The Ospreys essentially put the match away with their final shot of the match in the 85th minute.

After a chaotic scrum in the UNF box, junior midfielder Heather Botelho emerged with the ball and sent a clearance upfield. Despite a charge from FGCU goalkeeper Brittany Brown, Hopfensperger was able to latch onto the clearance just past midfield and take a touch around Brown. The junior fired a shot from 40 yards that found the middle of the empty net to give the Ospreys their 2-0 victory.

Seven different Ospreys tallied shots on the evening, as Hopfensperger and senior Michele Larrinaga led the way with three each. Senior goalkeeper Brittany Hahn recorded five saves for UNF to earn the shutout. Brown tallied six saves for the Eagles.

"I think we've been coming very close to beating a lot of these top A-Sun teams for a couple years now," Hamilton said. "This match was a chance to prove that we were ready to make that step into the top part of the conference and I'm very proud of how the team handled it."

The Ospreys are next in action on Sunday afternoon when they welcome Stetson to Hodges Stadium for a 1 p.m. match. Live stats will be available on UNFOspreys.com and the game will be streamed on ASun.tv free of charge.