Late Penalty Kick Sinks Tampa at Rollins

WINTER PARK, Fla. - The University of Tampa women's soccer team battled against the Rollins College Tars on the road but were unlucky as they were on the wrong end of a 1-0 final score in a closely fought game that Tampa controlled the pace of.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Tampa 0, Rollins 1
Records: Spartans (5-2-1, 2-2 SSC), Tars (3-5-1, 2-2-1 SSC)
Location: Barker Family Stadium | Winter Park, Fla.

All-time Series: Tampa leads the all-time series with 17 wins to 13 victories by Rollins and four draws.

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HOW IT HAPPENED:
1st Half | The game started out evenly matched as both teams went back and forth trying to settle in and figure out what the other teams' strategy would be. The visiting side found their rhythm quicker and UT was on the attack for a majority of the half. They saw most of the possession and kept attacking Rollins from both sides as they tried to find a gap in the defense. The Tars were able to hold them off and would try to break away on counters as they chased a goal of their own but the backline of the Spartans was quick to sniff out the attacks and keep them at bay. Both teams went into the break scoreless as Tampa had the better opportunities.

2nd Half | The play by the Spartans kept improving as the second half got underway. The first five minutes the two teams went back and forth but UT began to take control as they kept the play in the offensive end of the field and kept the Tars defense on alert as the Spartans had a handful of chances from the run of play and from set pieces to take the lead. Unfortunately, the home side was able to take advantage of a breakaway to race to the other end of the field. A collision in the box between a UT defender, the keeper and the Rollins attacker led to the referee calling for a penalty kick. The Tars went ahead on the scoreboard with 15 minutes to go as the ball found the back of the net from the spot. The Spartans would not go down without a fight however as a revitalized team tried their best to find the goal that would extend the game. The final quarter of an hour belonged to UT and all that kept them from finding that goal was a little luck in the final third as the team worked as a unit all over the field.

INSIDE THE STATS:
• The Spartans held a 9-1 edge in corner kicks over Rollins.
• Tampa outshot Rollins 17-10, holding the Tars to five shots in each half.
• Sarah Raymond, Miranda Gonzalez, and Lacy Nasello each recorded three shots on the night. Nasello had a powerful header in the second half off a corner kick that drew an acrobatic save from the Rollins keeper to keep it from going into the back of the net.
• Robyn-Anne Whittaker led the team with four shots on the night.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
• The last four matches for UT have finished with only one goal on the board as Tampa has gone 2-2-0.
• The Spartans have won the corner kick battle in every game this season, having 59 attempts on the season.

UP NEXT: The team will have a quick turnaround after tonight as they host the Barry Buccaneers on Saturday night for their Sunshine State Conference clash. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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