Spartans Swim Past Sailfish to Remain Undefeated
TAMPA, Fla.-The No.4 University of Tampa women's soccer team (8-0) defeated the Palm Beach Atlantic University Sailfish (1-3-1) by a score of 5-0 on Wednesday night at Pepin Stadium.
The 2013 squad possesses the school record for most consecutive wins to begin the season and is quickly approaching the record for consecutive wins overall at 10.
Within the first 10 minutes of the game, Tampa got off to an early lead with as Cici Gonzalez blasted a rocket past the Palm Beach Atlantic keeper Allison Fox in the upper left corner of the net. Spartan momentum continued throughout the half as they dominated Sailfish territory. Senior Shannon Walisch lengthened the Tampa lead by adding a second goal off a Palm Beach Atlantic defenseman.
Rounding out the first half, the Spartans outshot the Sailfish 7-3. Both keepers, Tampa's Alyson Gregorowicz and Palm Beach Atlantic's Fox, tallied two saves in the half.
The Spartans were off to a slugglish start in the second half with the Sailfish registering five shots. However the team came back to life in the 77th minute with a cross from midfielder Chelsea Martin to Cici Gonzalez to register her second goal of the game.
With a second wind, the Spartans registered two goals within the final five minutes of the half. Midfielder Cina Salemi dribbled the ball down the field to draw Fox out of the net with a cross to Martin who registered the fourth goal. Nearly one minute later, Arielle Gonzalez brought the Spartans to the final score with an unassisted goal in the 86th minute.
The Sailfish showed great effort in the second half but were unable to convert. Palm Beach Atlantic tallied two yellow cards in their attempts to regain possession.
Tampa rounded out the second half with 12 shots and four shots on goal. Gregorowicz captured three additional saves during her time in the net.
The Spartans return to action on Saturday, September 28 at Florida Southern College to face the Moccasins at 5 p.m. in Lakeland, Fla. Live stats and a webcast will be available through TampaSpartans.tv.
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