DAVIE - When Ben Strawbridge put together Florida Southern's 2008 schedule, he wanted a slate of games that would test the Moccasins. Those games have also tested him, and Sunday's was yet another example.

Playing their fourth game this year against a team that played in last year's NCAA Tournament, the Moccasins went back-and-forth with Dowling College (NY), but prevailed 3-2 on a late goal by Erin Hopkins. In two other games this year against playoff teams, the Mocs lost on goals by Armstrong Atlantic and Montevallo in the final three minutes.

"This weekend has been huge for us with all the passion and drama that took place," said Strawbridge. "Shakespeare himself couldn't have written it any better."

Sunday's win over Dowling was the Mocs' second in three days in which they scored a late game-winning goal. The first was on Friday against Liberty, the alma mater of Strawbridge and the Mocs' first Division I opponent. The Moccasins also had their alumni back for the weekend, honored two of their fallen teammates, then won a war of attrition with the Golden Lions.

On a hot and humid Sunday morning, the Moccasins (4-3) scored early but the momentum seemed to shift back and forth as the first half wore on. Florida Southern had four shots in the first 15 minutes, but did not have another one until six minutes before halftime. In the interim, Dowling re-grouped and put together some threats of its own, but all were turned aside by the FSC defense. The first half ended with each team taking six shots.

The Moccasins got their early goal from Princess Haley, who scored six minutes into the match. Haley wasn't even close to the net either. The sophomore forward lofted a soft shot from 25 yards out, sending it over the head of goalkeeper Alicia Commisso and just under the crossbar.

Haley nearly scored again in the 15th minute on a strong counter-attack by the Moccasins. The Golden Lions had taken their first shot of the game moments earlier, but the Mocs won the ball and Erin Hopkins quickly took it the other way. Racing down the left flank, Hopkins found Haley across the field close to where she'd scored earlier. This time though, Haley was inches off the mark, bouncing her shot off the bottom of the cross bar.

The Mocs had few chances the rest of the half and took their 1-0 lead into the shade of nearby tree at halftime. When the second half began, though, it was Dowling which came out a little bit stronger and tied the match in the 48th minute on a goal by Vanessa Moreira.

The Mocs responded in the 62nd minute with Hopkins and Linda Hoglund teaming up for an impressive goal. Hopkins set things up with a long downfield pass that was on target at the top of the box for Hoglund. With Commisso charging out to cut it off, Hoglund first headed the ball past her, then tracked it down and sent a shot into an empty net for a 2-1 lead.

"I saw the goalkeeper coming out so all I could do was try to head it past her," said Hoglund. "I heard Princess yelling that I had any empty net and had plenty of time, so I just placed a shot with my left foot and watched it roll in real slow. I got a beautiful ball from Erin to give me the chance."

That goal was a big one not only for the Moccasins, but for Hoglund as well. It allowed her to break the school's career points record with 70, surpassing the old mark of 68 previously held by Joanie DeHaven and Mindy Dymon. Hoglund now has 18 goals and 34 assists in her career.

The lead didn't hold up very long. The Golden Lions (3-2-3) answered just four minutes later when Moreira scored her second goal of the match. The team's leading scorer with nine goals this season, Moreira took a pass from Lauren Carbonaro that came all the way from the left side of the field. She slipped through the right side of the penalty box and knocked home a shot to the far post that knotted the game at two.

Again the Moccasins fought back, and again Hopkins was part of it. This time she was on the receiving end of a long pass from Christina Crooks. Hopkins took the ball into the box and converted from the left side for her seventh goal of the year, putting the Mocs ahead 3-2 with just over 17 minutes to play.

Then it was Dowling's turn to mount an attack. A corner kick in the 78th minute nearly gave the Golden Lions another goal too. Kristin Cipriano took it and placed it inside the six-yard box. However, the Lions were unable to control it and after a wild scramble for the ball, the Mocs cleared it from in front of the net.

Another close call came with three minutes to play, and this one nearly had disastrous results for the Moccasins. Stephanie Cotter, who had assisted Dowling's first goal, worked free near the end line inside the box and threaded a pass back to the center where an unmarked Carbonaro was waiting near the penalty spot. Her shot, however, sailed over the crossbar. That proved to be Dowling's last opportunity.

The Mocs finished with a 14-12 advantage in shots for the match, with goalkeeper Martina Tangen Billing making a season-high five saves. Her most difficult chance came in the 35th minute when she came out to stop Moreira one-on-one.

Florida Southern returns to action on Tuesday night when it hosts Palm Beach Atlantic at 5:00 p.m.

DC    0   2    -   2
FSC  1   2    -   3

SCORING: FSC--Haley (Vollmer, Crooks), 6:02; DC--Moreira (Cotter), 47:54; FSC--Hoglund (Hopkins), 61:34; DC--Moreira (Carbonaro), 65:49; FSC--Hopkins (Crooks), 72:41. SHOTS: DC 12, FSC 14. CORNER KICKS: DC 4, FSC 1. SAVES: DC 2 (Commisso), FSC 5 (Tangen Billing). FOULS: DC 10, FSC 10. CAUTIONS: None.