Spartans Tame Lions in Regional Matchup

FLORENCE, Ala. - The University of Tampa women's soccer team faced off against the University of North Alabama Lions team in their final game of the "Lions Shootout". The Spartans and Lions match concluded with a 2-1 victory for Tampa as the team has now won its last two games against UNA on their home field. 

In the first half, UT started out taking control of the game as they had the better of the opportunities. Tampa was able to take advantage of one of their six corners in the first half to go up 1-0 in the 10th minute of play as midfielder Nastasia Asgedom crossed the ball in and forward Meg Beidleman was able to get into the box and head the ball in, despite the defenders for North Alabama having a height advantage. After that, the game went back and forth with both teams fighting for possession and looking to use the wings to their advantage. In the 28th minute, the Lions found the back of the net as Kristen Sinden took a shot from long distance to even the game up at 1-1.

It didn't take long for the Spartans to reclaim the lead in the second half as they took advantage of another corner and a mix up in the box to score the eventual game-winning goal. The goal was credited to defender Lauren Cicero as she was the one to take the corner as the UNA goalkeeper tried to punch the ball out but deflected it into the net. After that, it was the home team taking the control as they tried to react and even up the score once again.

As the clock winded down near the end of the game, the team had to dig in and use the energy they had left to hold off a constant attack by the Lions who were trying to send the game into overtime. The back line of the Spartans made key blocks and interceptions to maintain the advantage for the visitors.

After the game, defender Lauren Cicero said: "This was a hard-fought win that the team deserved. We worked hard during practice yesterday to fix the details; building on what we did right against Mississippi College and fixing what we did wrong against them. With conference play opening on Saturday, it's nice to have some momentum before our trip to Georgia to play against Armstrong State."

With the momentum of their first win of the season, the Spartans will be back in action on Wednesday, September 14 when they travel to Savannah, Ga. to take on Armstrong State at 7 p.m. as they wrap up a 5 game stretch of games away from home to start the season. 

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