ROCK HILL, S.C. –The top two seeds will face off for the South Atlantic Conference tournament championship on Sunday at Manchester Meadows when the second-seeded Lady Railsplitters vie for their first conference title since 2007 against the top-seeded and No. 16 Carson-Newman at 1 p.m.
Behind second-half goals from
Courtney Boyd and
Itzel Ballesteros, Lincoln Memorial (13-4) defeated Lenoir-Rhyne 2-0 on Friday to advance to the SAC title match for the first time since 2013. Sunday will mark the Lady Railsplitters' third all-time tournament championship appearance.
SAC Offensive Player of the Year Magda Mosengo scored goals in the first and 53rd minutes to propel Carson-Newman (14-3) to the SAC title game for the fourth consecutive season. The defending national runner-up Eagles have won each of the past three SAC titles and are looking to become the first school in league history to win four consecutive SAC trophies.
The Basics
Sunday, November 4 vs. Carson-Newman – 1pm
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Quick Hits
- On a rain-drenched pitch, the Lady Railsplitters took advantage of a Lenoir-Rhyne defensive miscue to score the game-winning goal in the 71st minute, as Boyd recovered a dropped save from Loren Sterling to tally her first score of the season. Ballesteros put the finishing touch on the win just over five minutes later when she converted a breakaway goal in the 76th minute.
- Lincoln Memorial, which was ranked seventh in the latest Southeast Region poll, has won eight of its last nine matches and posted six shutouts over that span. The Lady Railsplitters have reeled off five straight wins since falling 1-0 in overtime against Tusculum on October 17.
- The five-match winning streak is the longest for the Lady Railsplitters since the 2014 team won six straight games from September 17-October 9. With a win on Sunday, Lincoln Memorial would post just its third winning streak of at least six this decade.
- First-team All-SAC selection Ballesteros has scored a goal in each of the Lady Railsplitters' SAC tournament matches. The junior striker scored the game-winning goal in overtime against Queens in the SAC quarterfinals and has five points total in the tournament.
- The Lady Railsplitters are now 6-8-1 in SAC tournament action. Sunday will be the program's third trip to the tournament championship match, where LMU is 1-1 all-time.
- Lincoln Memorial recorded its SAC-leading 10th shutout of the season in Friday's win over Lenoir-Rhyne. The Lady Railsplitters also lead the SAC by a wide margin in total goals allowed (13) and goals against average (0.76).
- The winner of Sunday's match earns the SAC's automatic berth to the NCAA tournament. The Lady Railsplitters have not been to the NCAA tournament since 2007.
Know the Opponent
- The Eagles have won eight consecutive matches since their last loss on October 3 at Tusculum. Over that span, Carson-Newman has scored multiple goals seven times and recorded three shutouts.
- Carson-Newman had seven players named to the All-SAC squad, including Offensive Player of the Year Magda Mosengo, Defensive Player of the Year Averi Williams and first-team defender Alex Brandan and goalie Jackie Burns. Forward Emilee Futrell, midfielder Catarina Realista and defender Jente Kuper were also named to the second team.
- Mosengo leads the SAC in goals with 19, points with 44 and game-winning goals with six. The forward has scored at least one goal in 15 of her 19 appearances, including a streak of three straight.
- Futrell has pitched in nine goals and four assists, while Holly Talbut-Smith has compiled four goals and five assists. Kennedy Rankin and Allie-Anne Blackburn have three goals apiece.
- Burns leads the SAC in goals against average with a 0.74 clip but has only made 13 appearances this season. She left Friday's SAC semifinals match in the 22nd minute due to injury.
- The Eagles own the SAC's top offensive attack with 49 total goals and 2.88 per match. On top of that, Carson-Newman is second behind the Lady Railsplitters defensively with a 0.93 goals against average.
Series History
- The Lady Railsplitters have lost five straight matches against the Eagles, including their worst loss of the 2018 season in a 5-2 setback on September 19 at the LMU Soccer Complex.
- Sunday will serve as the second SAC tournament meeting between the two long-time rivals, as Carson-Newman defeated the Lady Railsplitters 1-0 in the quarterfinal round in 2015.
