The Lady Bruins soccer team opened the 2020 season on the road on Friday afternoon as they fell to University of South Carolina - Beaufort 2-1 in Bluffton, South Carolina. After falling behind early, the Bruins battled back to tie it up but came up short in the road loss.
"Despite the lack of a true preseason, I thought we did a great job and it was one of our stronger performances in an opening match," Bruins Head Coach Chris Carmichael said. "We played a strong team that had a successful season last year and we had a lot of strong individual performances and collectively had some very good moments where our possession was opening up some good scoring opportunities."
This was the first-ever meeting between the two programs as both teams looked to open their season strong. From the opening kickoff, the two teams went back and forth with both trying to establish their rhythmof play. It didn't take long for the Sand Sharks to strike as Madison Foshee scored just over four minutes into the game to put USCB up 1-0.
The Bruins were back on their heels but came charging right back as they looked to even the score. In the 23rd minute, Gabriela Gonzalez threaded a pass to Kayle Stevenson who finished the play to even the score 1-1. It looked as though the Bruins had grabbed momentum, but the Sand Sharks would have the last strike of the half as Mari Kalvatn scored to put the Sand Sharks up 2-1 at the half.
In the second half, the Bruins looked to again find the equalizer as they came out strong in the opening minutes. Brinkley Adams and Gabriela Gonzalez each were able to find a good look on frame, but neither found the back of the net. Despite their chances throughout the second half, the Bruins failed to score as the final buzzer ended any hopes of a comeback with the score 2-1.
"We are getting stronger each day in training and I was very happy with the first game other than the score as we made two mistakes that each cost us a goal but that's part of the learning process," Coach Carmichael said. "We are not fully galvanized yet but that's a process the team always has to go thru as they learn how to adjust and play with each other. We will get some quick rest and get ready for our match tomorrow against Toccoa Falls."
Kayle Stevenson notted her first goal of the season while Gabriela Gonzalez picked up her first assist. The two teams were locked at seven shots each for the match with Angelina Martin making a pair of saves for the Bruins.
Next up, the Bruins will be back in action on Saturday night as they welcome Toccoa Falls College to Alumni Stadium for the 2020 home opener. Kickoff for the match is set for 8 p.m.
