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Montreat spoils Shorter's home opener, tops Lady Hawks 1-0
By Matt Green
ROME -- Montreat College's Lauren Cantin scored in the 38th minute as the Lady Cavaliers hung on to stun Shorter University 1-0 in the Lady Hawks' 2011 season opener on Saturday night at Ben Brady Field.
Montreat improves to 1-1 with the victory while the Lady Hawks (0-1) fell to 0-6-1 in their last seven season opening matches.
The Lady Hawks, who received a vote in the NAIA Women's Soccer Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll, dominated the match for much of the evening, finishing the game with a 14-7 advantage in shots and 5-1 edge in corner kicks.
Cantin's goal in the first half came against the run of play as Montreat sprung free on a transition opportunity. Shorter goalkeeper Taylor Hays made a spectacular save on a point blank attempt from Annie Poetker, but Cantin corralled the rebound and chipped the ball over Hays and into the net for the deciding strike of the match.
Shorter reclaimed the momentum early in the second half as it searched for an equalizer. Sophomore transfer Aline Bez Tamiosso fired two shots on target and Kelli Davis saw her attempt from 18 yards out glance off the right post with 30 minutes to play.
The Lady Hawks, already down two starters to season-ending knee injuries and two others to ailments that will keep them out indefinitely, entered Saturday's season opener without starting midfielder Jessica Wright, who injured her knee earlier in the week.
Shorter's casualty count climbed on Saturday, as starting midfielder Cintia Lamas left early in the second half with a concussion before defender Helena Farinha departed with a severely sprained ankle. Both players will be re-evaluated at the start of next week.
Montreat goalkeeper Caroline Mellard kept her team ahead with several quality saves. She finished with eight stops on the night as Montreat rebounded from a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Davenport University on Aug. 17.
Bez Tamiosso and Davis each fired off five shots for Shorter. Brandi Greenwald took two shots and Hays finished with two saves despite being rarely tested between the pipes.
The Lady Hawks return to action on Sept. 2 when they travel to Daytona Beach, Fla., to take on 16th-ranked Embry-Riddle University at 7 pm.
