MELBOURNE, Fla. — The eighth-ranked Catawba College women's soccer team was suppressed by defending national champion No. 1 Florida Tech, 5-1, on Wednesday afternoon at Rick Stottler Field.
Avery Rush fired in her third goal of the season late in the second half to break up the shutout. The Catawba Indians (5-2) were outdone by Florida Tech (5-0-1) in shots by a heavy 22-7 margin with on-goal tries at 10-4. Bree Ehmer, Ella Matthews and Ryen Gibbs joined Rush with on-target attempts as Ali Skinner, Cadence Setzer and Alex Eguren also chipped in one shot apiece. Lauren Zitt went the distance, registering five saves for a .500 day in net. The Panthers commanded the corner kick battle with a 13-3 advantage.
Catawba threatened quickly with a corner kick drawn in the opening 20 seconds, but it failed to develop into a scoring opportunity. Florida Tech used a breakaway to flip the field in the fifth minute, resulting in Eboni Bradshaw finding pay dirt for the match's initial score. Ehmer put Catawba's first shot of the match on frame at the 15-minute mark, followed by four Panther corner kicks in the ensuing 12 minutes.
The 33rd minute saw Bradshaw and Ellinor Blaasternes attempt to up the score with back-to-back shots that Zitt turned away. Matthews sent a curling shot toward the left edge of the hosts' net but it was saved with a diving stop from Mette Brandes. The Catawba Indians fended off Florida Tech's seventh corner chance with halftime approaching, keeping the score at 1-0 at the break.
The blue and white blocked a pair of Panther shots at the start of the second half, but a lifted pass to the 6-yard box reached Bradshaw who scored from the doorstep. The Panthers rode the momentum to another strike 33 seconds later on a breakaway finished by Kamila Pena. Florida Tech tickled the twine twice more in the 57th and 66th minutes from Iselin Brualoekken and Blaasternes. Gibbs tested the host keeper with a shot to the lower right that got saved.
Inside the last 10 minutes, two Panther corners were denied with Catawba taking the second into attacking territory to work a corner kick of its own. Bouncing around in the air near the 6, Rush headed in the loose volley to put the Catawba Indians on the board with 5:26 to play. The sides exchanged corner kicks in the final two minutes as the match came to a close at a 5-1 ledger.
Catawba returns home for a South Atlantic Conference tilt on Saturday, Sept. 19, against Emory & Henry at Frock Field. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.
