Daniel, Griffin score in 2-0 victory over Mustangs Sunday
South Carolina’s women’s soccer was back in action Sunday, defeating SMU 2-0 to remain undefeated.
The Gamecock victory dropped SMU to .500, with three wins and as many losses.
South Carolina was in control offensively throughout the first half, outshooting the Mustangs 10-4, but the period came and went without a goal.
Sophomore midfielder Bay Daniel had a chance in the second minute on a diving header but did not convert.
In the 51st minute, however, Daniel recorded her first career goal to give the Gamecocks a 1-0 lead. In the set up, senior midfielder Elizabeth Sinclair played a long ball down the left side to sophomore left back Caroline Gray. Gray quickly hit a cross to Daniel who was at the far post to tap the ball in for the score.
“It was pretty crucial,” Daniel said. “It was my first goal of the season, so it felt pretty good to get one in and know that it’s possible. … It’s a lot harder to score in the college game.”
Senior forward Danielle Au almost added to her impressive goal scoring campaign in the 64th minute. A slow pass to SMU’s goalkeeper, Shannon Moroney, put her in a tough position. Moroney did not come out to get the ball, and Au sprinted after it, getting a touch on it before an SMU defender hustled back to knock the ball out of play.
Less than two minutes later, the game got tense for South Carolina.
SMU junior midfielder Rikki Clarke was taken down in the penalty box while trying to get near the end line. Clarke stepped up to take the penalty, but junior keeper Sabrina D’Angelo made a diving save to knock the ball away. Junior forward Shelby Redman had a chance at the rebound, but D’Angelo pushed away the shot again to keep her shutout alive.
Several minutes later, a one-touch play from South Carolina freshman Sophie Groff to fellow freshman Daija Griffin almost resulted in another goal for the Gamecocks, but SMU’s Moroney corralled Griffin’s close-range shot.
South Carolina got an insurance goal in the 80th minute. Freshman forward Vanessa Kovar had the ball at the top of the box and struck a through ball to the right side of the goal to Daniel, who passed to sophomore midfielder Raina Johnson on the far post.
Johnson put the ball away for the score, marking her third goal in as many games and tying her with Au for the team lead.
D’Angelo, who was named AgSouth Athlete of the Week, finished the game with her fifth shutout of the year and the 12th of her career. She recorded four saves, highlighted by her stop on the penalty kick.
Associate head coach Jamie Smith said he was pleased with the defensive performance but thought the Gamecock attack could have cashed in on more of its opportunities.
“I thought we did well to keep the ball, and I thought we turned them over well,” he said. “I think we should have scored more goals. I know that’s a greedy thing to say, but at the same time, we have to do better at taking advantage of our chances. We had a couple of really strong chances that we didn’t put away, and sometimes you don’t get those extra chances in games.”
Smith was also impressed by Daniel’s goal and said the sophomore had been playing well.
Smith said he is not as concerned about the defensive front as he is about the offense finishing its chances. The team’s focus in practice before they play South Florida Thursday is to make good decisions in the attacking third and to keep improving on maintaining possession.
“We have to continue to keep the ball better,” Smith said. “In every game we’ve played, we’ve given some easy ones away that led to chances for the other team. We can’t let that happen. As you get into SEC play especially, these teams can hurt you if you do that.”