EVANS, Ga. — The 17th-ranked University of North Georgia women's soccer team scored two goals in the opening 10 minutes in Friday's Peach Belt Conference Tournament semifinal and never looked back, defeated No. 2-seed UNC Pembroke, 4-0, at Blanchard Woods Park in Evans. The Nighthawks advance to 14-1-3 on the year with the victory and move on to Sunday's PBC Championship game against top-seeded and regular season champion, Columbus State.
Sophia Matonak got the scoring party started for UNG in the seventh minute after
Michaela Sundstrom found her at the top of the box with Matonak's kick trickling off the hands of the UNCP goalkeeper.
The Nighthawks struck again less than a minute later as
Rachel VanHorn put the ball in the far corner of the goal to give North Georgia a 2-0 advantage. The forward from Marietta found the back of the net again in the 21st on a cross in from
Megan Gil to give UNG the 3-0 lead that it took into halftime.
Matonak provided the final goal of the night in the 47th with a blast from outside the box into the upper 90 giving the Nighthawks the 4-0 lead that proved final.
NOTES
- With her two goals tonight
Rachel VanHorn tied and then broke the school record for goals in a single season with 19 now on the year, besting the previous high of 18 held by both Cicely Taliaferro (2014) and Kelly Penston (2013).
- UNG outshot the Braves 14-9 on the night with a 7-4 advantage in shots on goal.
- The Nighthawks move to 4-6-3 in the all-time series against UNCP, though since 2013, North Georgia holds a 2-0-3 advantage in the series.
- The 4-0 deficit was the largest margin of defeat for UNC Pembroke this season.
NEXT UP
The Nighthawks will face Columbus State in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament Championship at 3:30 p.m., on Sunday. It is the third straight year that the two teams have meet in the PBC title match with the Cougars squeaking by with one-goal wins in both contests.
