Barton, Mount Olive and North Greenville Advance to Second Round of Conference Carolinas Women’s Soccer Championship

11/1/2023 7:01:15 PM

MOUNT OLIVE/WILSON, N.C./TIGERVILLE, S.C.– The 2023 Conference Carolinas Women’s Soccer Championship kicked off on Wednesday and fourth-seeded Barton, fifth-seeded Mount Olive and sixth-seeded North Greenville each advanced to the second round.

In WIlson, it was the host Bulldogs (6-5-5) who scored a pair of goals each half en route to a 4-0 victory over ninth-seeded Young Harris (9-6-4). Barton got on the board first in the 29th minute as Corinne Denham found Anna Fretwell in the box and Fretwell finished with a bicycle kick for the 1-0 lead. Just before the half, in the 45th minute, Kassie Krul blasted a shot from outside the box and beat the keeper with an assist from Iris Gissuradottir. At the 48:55 mark, almost four minutes into the second half, Krul converted a penalty kick for her second goal of the game and 10th of the season. The final tally came in the 86th minute as Gissuradottir found Lexis Goldberg who beat the keeper to the lower left 90 for the 4-0 margin. Barton had 18 shots in the contest with 10 on frame while the Mountain Lions attempted 15 shots with eight on goal.

In Mount Olive, the Trojans (6-4-7) got a set piece goal from Samantha Hamrick in the 64th minute for what proved to be the game-winner in a 1-0 victory over eighth-seeded Lees-McRae (3-8-6). Hamrick netted the goal off a corner kick as her service curved into the net for the only goal of the game. The Trojans offense mustered 14 shots with seven on frame while the defense limited the Bobcats to just three shots, none on goal.

Mount Olive will travel to Wilson on Saturday, Nov. 4 for the quarterfinals with kickoff scheduled for 12 p.m. The winner will advance to face top-seeded UNC Pembroke in the first women’s semifinal at the Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park in Browns Summit, North Carolina on Friday, Nov. 10 at 4:30 p.m.

In the other half of the bracket in Tigerville, the host Crusaders (11-4-2) scored in the second and fourth minutes for a 2-0 victory over seventh-seeded Chowan (3-7-5). Aleisha Lamb scored the first goal 61 seconds into the contest with an assist from Isabella Gyurich and Marli Cevallos and Elainee Sprinkle added the second goal 3:09 into the contest and the North Greenville defense did the rest. The Crusaders attempted 15 shots and put five on frame while the Hawks tallied 11 shots with six on goal.

North Greenville advances to play No. 3 Francis Marion in the quarterfinals on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 2 p.m. in Florence, South Carolina. The winner will face No. 2 Belmont Abbey in the second women’s semifinal at Bryan Park on Friday, Nov. 10 at 7 p.m.

Fans can watch every game of the tournament live via the Conference Carolinas Digital Network and BlueFrame at conferencecarolinasdn.com. Information regarding the championship schedule, bracket and the Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park are available here.

2023 Conference Carolinas Women’s Soccer Championship
First Round – Wednesday, November 1 (Higher Seed Hosts)
#4 Barton def. #9 Young Harris, 4-0
#5 Mount Olive def. #8 Lees-McRae, 1-0
#6 North Greenville def. #7 Chowan, 2-0

Quarterfinals – Saturday, November 4 (Higher Seed Hosts)
#5 Mount Olive vs. #4 Barton, 12:00 p.m.
#6 North Greenville at #3 Francis Marion, 2:00 p.m.

Semifinals – Friday, November 10 (Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park – Browns Summit, N.C.)
Winner #4-#5 vs. #1 UNC Pembroke, 4:30 p.m.
Winner of #3-#6 vs. #2 Belmont Abbey, 7:00 p.m.

Final – Sunday, November 12 (Truist Soccer Complex at Bryan Park – Browns Summit, N.C.)
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2, 4 p.m.