Sailfish Score in Second Half on Free Kick to Slip Past Moccasins 1-0

LAKELAND – Karina White scored the only goal of the night by heading in a free kick from Bridget Wollrabe and Palm Beach Atlantic's defense held off a late charge by Florida Southern as the Sailfish defeated the Moccasins 1-0 at Barnett Field Friday night.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• A scoreless first half saw a total of only five shots taken, four by Palm Beach Atlantic (5-8-1, 2-5-1 Sunshine State Conference) and one by Florida Southern (1-9-2, 1-7). Neither team took a shot until the 21st minute when PBA's Morgan Campbell received a cross from Monica Rojas and put a header on target but right at FSC goalkeeper Helena Norrstrom.
• The Moccasins took their first shot in the 26th minute when Caitlin Quaempts hit one from the right wing that forced PBA goalkeeper Isabelle Granlund into a save.
• The first five minutes of the second half saw good scoring chances by both teams, including a shot by Margot Chowansky that carried a bit to the left after she was set up by Anna Griessler and Quaempts. Less than a minute later, Alexa Moberley worked her way through the PBA defense and created confusion among the back line before the ball was ultimately cleared away from and open net.
• The opening minutes of the second half also saw a nicely played ball by Becca Watson out of the back up to Sheila Ramos through the middle, but Wollrabe swept in to stop the run and prevent a shot.
• The Sailfish broke through in the 59th minute after a foul near midfield gave them a free kick, which was taken by Wollrabe. The senior defender sent it long and into the box where it was headed in by another defender, Karina White for her third goal of the season.
• Florida Southern had the final five shots of the game, all of them coming in the final 11 minutes, including two by Jess Goedde. Kylie Harris also put a header off a corner kick on target that was saved by Granlund, and Gaelyn Crowder took came up to take one from outside the box in the 88th minute that was also saved.
• Both teams finished with eight total shots in the defensive battle, with the Mocs out-shooting the Sailfish 7-4 in the second half. Crowder, Goedde, Watson and Juliana Guida were the starting backs for Florida Southern, with Carly Faust playing 15 minutes in the first half as well.
• Granlund notched her fourth shutout of the season with three saves, while Norrstrom made three saves for Florida Southern in a little under 63 minutes. Paige Koetter stopped one shot in her time in the game.
• PBA had seven corner kicks to Florida Southern's five.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Friday night's game was the fifth straight for Florida Southern decided by one goal or less, and it was the sixth straight game decided the same way for Palm Beach Atlantic.
• The Moccasins have now had 10 of their 12 games decided by a single goal or end in a tie. They've given up one goal or less in seven of them.
• The Moccasins lowered their team goals against average to 1.37, and as long as they give up less than six goals on Sunday, they will finish with their lowest GAA in the last four seasons.
• Florida Southern has given up less than 10 shots on three occasions this season.
• The last time Florida Southern was involved in a game where neither team took 10 shots was in a 1-0 loss to Eckerd on October 8, 2014 when the Mocs took nine and the Tritons took seven for the same combination of 16 the Mocs and Sailfish had Friday.
• The Sailfish and Moccasins have played 1-0 games each of the last two years, with the Sailfish winning last year in West Palm Beach. They combined for 37 shots in last year's game.
• Florida Southern honored its three seniors prior to the game: Margot Chowansky, Sheila Ramos, and Aubrey Riggins. Riggins was unable to play due to injury this year, while Chowansky has played in 11 games with seven starts, and Ramos has played in 12 with 11 starting assignments. Chowansky and Ramos are both 4-year letter winners while Riggins has been with the team three years after transferring from the University of South Florida.

UP NEXT

• Florida Southern will play its final game of the season on Sunday afternoon against Lynn. Kickoff at Barnett Field is scheduled for 4 p.m. Sunday's game is a makeup date after their originally scheduled game on October 8 was postponed due to Hurricane Matthew.