Houston – The Centenary women's soccer team registered a thrilling 1-0 double-overtime victory over the St. Thomas Celts on Friday evening at the Houston Sports Park.
The Ladies (2-2) won for the second-straight time after falling in their first two matches to open the season. Centenary and St. Thomas (0-4) were playing a non-conference match despite the two being Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference rivals as SCAC play does not begin until next month.
The teams battled scoreless for 90 minutes in regulation and a 10-minute overtime period until junior F Avery Gilbert (League City, Texas) found the net midway through the second OT to give the Ladies the road win. Junior MF Ariel Muller (Groves, Texas) was credited with the assist. The goal is Gilbert's first this season and fifth of her career while Muller recorded her second-career assist.
Centenary maintained the momentum from a big win on Wednesday evening as the Ladies made history as they defeated a Division I opponent for the first time in the current division III era (2011-present), edging the Alcorn State University Lady Braves in a non-conference contest, 2-1, in Lorman, Miss. The Ladies have now won six of their last seven non-conference road matches dating back to the 2019 season and have also allowed one goal or less in 14 of their last 16 matches over the last two seasons.
Senior GK Avery Sanderson (McKinney, Texas) played the entire match and made one save, earning her first shutout this season and third of her career. St. Thomas keeper Sadie Penney also went the distance and allowed the one goal and made seven saves. Centenary was aggressive all night on offense and finished with a decisive 17-7 advantage in shots, including a 4-0 edge in the two overtime periods. Each team took three corner kicks in the match and combined for 12 fouls, eight by the Ladies and four going to the Celts. Gilbert led the Ladies with five shots while junior F Sydney Bascomb (Mesquite, Texas) took four.
The Ladies and Celts will meet again next month in a conference match, set for Friday, Oct. 8 at Mayo Field (5 p.m.). Centenary will now rest up for a week and then welcomes Belhaven and UT Dallas to town next weekend for a pair of non-conference matches. The Ladies will face the Blazers of Belhaven on Friday, Sept. 17 at 5:30 p.m. and then square off with the Comets on Sunday, Sept. 19 at 3 p.m.
See the complete women's soccer season schedule here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/wsoc/2021-22/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests but be advised of current COVID-19 protocols for fans. Updated COVID-19 information is now available via www.GoCentenary.com. Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests.
#GoCentenary #CTheOpportunity
