LAKELAND – With Kirra Rainbow and Kristy Legoas doing the scoring for the Moccasins, Florida Southern and Saint Leo swapped goals twice in the first half to go the locker room tied at two, but the 19th-ranked Lions scored the only two goals of the second half to pull out a 4-2 win over the Moccasins at Barnett Field Wednesday night.
With a total of six goals in the match, it was Florida Southern's highest scoring game of the season, and the most goals the Moccasins and Lions have combined for in the 20-game series history. There could have easily been at least two more in the second half for Florida Southern, if not for a huge save by Saint Leo goalkeeper Laura Carstens and a timely blocked shot by midfielder Ari Foreman. Instead of a tie though, and perhaps overtime, the Lions used two goals and an assist from 2013 national scoring champion Arielle Kabangu to earn the win.
Even with two goals for each team in the first half, Florida Southern and Saint Leo combined for only nine shots in the period, with the Moccasins taking six of them and putting five on target. Kabangu scored the first goal of the match in the fifth minute and added another in the 34th, both off passes from Katie Waddell, with her second goal bouncing off the right post. That gave the sophomore forward 12 goals for the season.
In between Kabangu's brace, Rainbow tied the score for Florida Southern in the 27th minute after receiving a pass from freshman Izzy Loyd (Melbourne, Fla.) and beating a defender down the field to go 1-on-1 with Carstens. The senior from Melbourne Beach, Florida cashed in for her seventh goal of the season.
After the Lions had re-claimed the lead, the Moccasins threatened in the 37th and 41st minutes when Carstens stopped a pair of shots by Loyd, one of them after a well-played ball by junior defender Gianna Conte (Orange Park, Fla.) led her into the box. The Mocs would then use a free kick in the 43rd minute to tie the score for the second time, with Legoas connecting from near the arc. It was the second goal of the season for the sophomore from Palm Harbor.
The Moccasins nearly grabbed the lead just before halftime when junior center back Christine Knudstrup(Lakeland, Fla.) played a ball long to Rainbow directly down the middle of the field, and a mix-up in the Saint Leo back line left an opening. Carstens came charging off her line, however, and smothered the loose ball a step before Rainbow could reach it for a shot.
After twice setting up Kabangu for goals in the first half, Waddell was on the receiving end of a Kabangu pass in the 63rd minute that allowed her to slip a shot inside the left post for the go-ahead goal. Genevieve Gignac was credited with an assist on the play as well, and added another on Saint Leo's insurance goal by Rosie Young in the 81st minute.
Even with Saint Leo scoring twice in the second half, Florida Southern again held the edge in shots (7-6), but Carstens made three more saves to keep them off the scoreboard in the final 45 minutes. She also got a big play from Foreman, who swooped in to block a shot by Conte in the 76th minute when it looked as if the Mocs would tie the game for the third time.
Florida Southern ended up with another shot by sophomore Sheila Ramos (Tampa, Fla.) in that sequence, and when the Lions cleared a corner kick by Ramos, senior defender Sydney Montgomery (Sanford, Fla.) was there to collect it for the Moccasins and ripped a long-range shot that Carstens went sprawling to her right to save. It marked the second time in two minutes the Saint Leo defense prevented the Moccasins from scoring an equalizer.
Florida Southern finished with a 13-9 advantage in shots, and a 5-2 edge in corners.
Wednesday night's match was also the final home game of the season, and also marked the final appearance at Barnett Field for Rainbow, Montgomery, forward Emmalisa Zapfe (Cherry Hill, N.J.), midfielder Jackie Metz (Vero Beach, Fla.) and goalkeeper Erin Moseley (Jacksonville, Fla.). All five seniors were in the starting lineup.
Florida Southern ends the season on Saturday with a 4:30 p.m. match against 2nd-ranked Barry. The game will be carried live on NSCAA TV.
