Box Score ANDERSON, SC – Florida Southern's class of newcomers continued to make an impact for the Moccasins on offense, and so too did senior Erin Moseley on defense. With sophomore transfer Aubrey Riggins and freshmen Abby Bravo and Izzy Loyd scoring goals, and Moseley making two big saves for a shutout, the Moccasins started their 2-game trip to South Carolina with a 3-0 win over Anderson on Wednesday.
Riggins scored her first goal of the season on a free kick in the 18th minute, while Bravo scored her second goal of 2014 in the 47th. Loyd then put the game out of reach in the 82nd minute by notching the first goal of her collegiate career. By that point, Moseley had already stopped one shot at close range to give the Moccasins (2-0-1) some breathing room, and had to do it again to preserve their second shutout in three games this season.
Florida Southern went to halftime with a 7-5 advantage in shots, and all of them were quality scoring chances. A fairly evenly-played match started to tilt though in favor of the Moccasins in the final eight minutes of the first half when they pushed into the Anderson box on four separate occasions and only narrowly missed adding to their 1-0 halftime lead.
Two of those opportunities were created by Riggins (Bradenton, Fla.), who gave Bravo (Clearwater, Fla.) and sophomore Sheila Ramos (Tampa, Fla.) good shots in the 39th and 40th minutes. Coming in from the left side of the box, Bravo beat Anderson goalkeeper Sadie Lancaster to the ball for her shot, but pushed it just wide of the far post. Ramos then got loose on the right side of the box and tried to go near post against Lancaster but also pushed her shot wide.
The Mocs continued their late first-half surge in the 43rd minute when senior Jackie Metz (Vero Beach, Fla.) took charge and sent a ball into the box that was just a step too far for senior Kirra Rainbow (Melbourne Beach, Fla.). Then, 30 seconds before halftime, Rainbow received a ball down the middle from freshman center back Juliana Guida (Bradenton, Fla.), and dribbled through three Anderson defenders before pulling a shot wide of the far post by mere inches.
A 15-minute break for halftime did nothing to slow the onslaught. Barely over a minute into the second half, the Moccasins went ahead 2-0, with freshman Ricki Vetzel (Tampa, Fla.) breaking down the right flank before sending a cross from deep in the corner to Bravo at the near post. Beating a defender for inside position, Bravo was able to re-direct the ball into the net for her second goal of the year.
Loyd's goal was a looping shot from more than 20 yards out with nine minutes on the clock. Extremely well-placed, and from that distance, it was impossible for Lancaster to stop and effectively ended any chance for an Anderson comeback.
The best scoring opportunities for the Trojans (2-1) were both stopped by Moseley, the Mocs' senior goalkeeper from Jacksonville. Her first big save came just two minutes after the Mocs had taken their 1-0 lead when the Trojans worked the ball in to Paige Gowans-Smith dead center of the box. With an open look at the net, Gowans-Smith got a strong shot off only to have Moseley dive to her right to make the save.
Moseley had to make a similar play in the second half, though by that point, the Mocs were already up 3-0. This one came in the 87th minute when a perfect cross from Maddie Volz out of the right corner gave the ball to Alaina Gay in nearly the same position as Gowans-Smith earlier in the game. Moseley was again up to the task, smothering the shot from the center of the box to keep the Trojans off the board.
Overall, Moseley had to make only three saves in the match, while Lancaster made two for Anderson. The Mocs out-shot the Trojans, 12-11, with Anderson getting three of those shots in the final four minutes. Most of the defensive work was done by Guida, senior Sydney Montgomery (Sanford, Fla.), junior Christine Knudstrup (Lakeland, Fla.), and junior Gianna Conte (Orange Park, Fla.). Freshman Jess Goedde (Batavia, Ohio) again played a large portion of the second half.
Florida Southern will finish its road trip on Friday night against Lander University with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
