Elon women’s soccer team had a strong showing in a match against the High Point University Panthers, coming out with a 2-1 lead.
It started well for the Phoenix with junior Gabby Tirado scoring an early goal to put the Phoenix up, thanks to an assist from redshirt senior Isa Murdock.
“We talk a lot about runners in the box, especially when Isa has the ball,” Tirado said. “You know, she's the type of player that's going to dribble, take people on. So I think we expect a lot of people to be in the box. I was fortunate enough to make that run in and get on the end of it.”
The Phoenix played tough on defense and gave High Point little breathing room to score. The team was able to secure a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
In the early moments of the second half, senior Grace Gelhaus weaved through two defenders to lay a direct pass to senior Lauren McCauley for the goal. This gave the Phoenix a 2-0 lead and a little bit of a cushion.
As the game continued, High Point was resilient on offense. A handball in the goal box by Elon redshirt junior Alexis Pierce gave High Point a penalty kick, leading to a Panther’s goal.
As the game continued, it became a slugfest, and both teams were fighting to get the victory. Elon assistant coach Clifton Bush received a yellow card in a heated moment.
Head coach Neil Payne credited his own team’s resilience in response to High Point’s pressure as the game continued.
“Well, I think we were the better team for most of the game, but when we got up 2-1, we obviously had to defend the lead,” Payne said. “Towards the end, High Point were throwing a lot of numbers forward and putting a lot of pressure on us. So we showed a lot of character and resilience to just see the game through, especially the last 10 or 15 minutes. So really proud of them for that.”
The Phoenix was able to stick together as a team and worked hard to earn the victory against High Point. Payne said this was a good bounce-back game for the team after a tie with Davidson College on Aug. 27.
“We were disappointed with our game on Thursday because we were in complete control of the game,” Payne said. We gave up two late goals, so the team wasn't happy about that. So we've had a really good week of training, and they were determined to fix that today.”
Gabby Tirado said this win will give them momentum as the season continues.
“I know everyone, and we're going to work extra hard in practice this week, especially leading up to conference, just to keep the momentum rolling with these wins,” Tirado said.
The Phoenix are now 3-1-1 on the year and look to continue their winning ways against Virginia Military Institute on the road Thursday, Sept. 3rd at Patchin Field.