Sakai Nets a Pair, Firehawks Magical Postseason Run Comes to a Close
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
#11 Tennessee Southern (16-5-3) | 2 | 1 | 3 |
|
#1 William Carey (24-0-0) | 3 | 4 | 7 |
FOLEY, Ala. – The 12th seed University of Tennessee Southern women's soccer concluded NAIA Championship final site play with a 7-3 semifinal round loss to top seed William Carey (24-0). UT Southern (16-5-3) matched the top seed in the land in a physical first half. The Firehawk faithful in attendance rose to their feet in the 13th minute. Miran Sakai put the Firehawks on the board first with a set-piece goal just outside the 18-yard box. Six minutes later, Nao Katamoto would hoist UT Southern up 2-nil scoring her second goal in two consecutive tournament matches. The Crusaders would answer two minutes later to cut the Firehawk lead to one. WCU would draw even five minutes later. The Crusaders would add a third first half score via an awarded penalty. William Carey would lead in shots at the half 17-4.
The crusaders continued to attack in the second half scoring four goals to lead 7-2. With just over five minutes to play, Sakai would finish the Marina Nawa pass to close the gap to 7-3. WCU outshot UTS 33-10 and held the shots on goal totals at 15-5.
Layken Stockstill (13-4-3) allowed six goals and recorded seven miraculous saves in 71 minutes between the sticks. Petra Brncova recorded one save and allowed one goal in 12 minutes of play. Hallie Cherry also played and did not face a shot.
FIREHAWK HISTORY
The 2023 Firehawks etched their name in the program history books this season. The 2023 team was the fifth team to reach the semifinals. However, to trump that, the 2023 team was the youngest side ever to reach the final four. The seniors of this squad reached the NAIA quarterfinals in all five years from 2019-2023. Coach Will Austin became the program's career wins leader with a 10-nil win over Brewton-Parker on senior day this season. Austin sports a 143-22-14 (.838) record in eight complete seasons. This team, like each year's teams before, didn't rely on excellence on the field, but performed with the same determination in the classroom.
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