CLEMSON, S.C. – Despite a strong offensive effort from the Clemson women’s soccer team that saw 22 shots, the Tigers battled to a 1-1 tie against Louisville (7-6-2, 3-5-1 ACC) on Sunday afternoon at Historic Riggs Field. The match concluded the home regular season for Clemson (10-5-1, 5-3-1 ACC), who picked up a point in the ACC with the draw.
The Clemson offense controlled the ball for the majority of the first half, and the Morris sisters once again came through to get the Tigers on the board in the 30th minute. Makenna Morris played a ball across, before Maliah ripped a shot into the bottom left corner of the net for her third straight game with a goal. Forward Caroline Conti also received an assist on the score. The Tigers went into the halftime break leading 1-0 and outshooting the Cardinals 9-2, with three shots on goal to Louisville’s zero. Clemson also generated five corner-kick opportunities.
However, the Cardinals responded in the 45th minute with an equalizer to draw even at 1-1. The teams traded several offensive attacks in the second half, and the Tigers generated multiple prime chances to take the lead but without avail. In the half, Clemson recorded nine shots for a total of 18 in the game, while holding Louisville to just seven total. Regulation time came to an end with the score still knotted, sending the teams into overtime.
In overtime, Conti found an opening inside the penalty area and launched a brilliant shot, but the Cardinal goalkeeper made a diving save to deny the opportunity for a golden goal. Senior Abby Hanks and freshman Renee Lyles also created fantastic chances, but their shots sailed just high and the game continued to a second overtime period.
Clemson generated more opportunities in the final ten minutes, totaling four shots across the two overtime periods, but Louisville’s defensive front and stellar goalkeeper play was able to stave off the Tigers. The Clemson defense held Louisville without a shot in overtime. After the 20 extra minutes expired, the game ended in a hard-fought 1-1 draw.
“The kids worked extremely hard and left it all out on the field,” said Head Coach Eddie Radwanski. “Louisville is a very defensive-minded, disciplined team but we only have ourselves to blame for this ending in a tie. We should’ve put this game away earlier in the first half… so that’s a tough pill to swallow, but we need to regroup and get ready for the final game of the regular season.”
Next up, Clemson will travel to Boston College for its last ACC match of the year at Newton Campus Soccer Field on Thursday, October 28. The match will kick off at 5 p.m. on ESPNU.
For complete coverage of the Clemson women’s soccer team, follow @ClemsonWSoccer on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
