JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – The ULM women's soccer team looked well put together on Friday night (Aug. 17), but Jacksonville State took advantage of some Warhawk mishaps in order to put shots on goal. Freshman Cassidy Wiest scored ULM's lone goal as the Warhawks fell 2-1 to the Gamecocks.
 
"I think we outplayed them tonight," said head soccer coach Keyton Wheelock. "The stats don't reflect that, but overall possession and pressure was in our favor for most of the match. I think we kept the ball well and kept it in motion throughout the match."
 
Jacksonville State's first goal hit the back of the net less than 18 minutes into regulation. Off the foot of Madison Carruthers, and assisted by Danelle Lindo, the Gamecocks would take an early 1-0 lead.
 
Senior goalkeeper Brooke-Lynn Scroggins would finish the match with an impressive nine saves, but her talents in the net were not enough to keep JSU's offensive attack at bay.
 
Despite being able to string together enough passes to form an offensive attack, an offsides call against the Warhawks at the 36:13 mark would give the Gamecocks possession and an opportunity to score. Attacking up the left side, JSU's Nadia Plawiuk sent one in from outside the box, putting her shot into the upper right corner of the net and far out of Scroggins reach. Plawiuk's goal would leave the Warhawks trailing 2-0 at halftime.
 
Returning for the second half of play, ULM's defense held strong through back-to-back shots from Jacksonville State. The Warhawk defense saw a lot of new faces tonight, with freshmen Maelwenn Gaiffas, Blake DeLaMater, and Morgan Lester all seeing the pitch as defenders.
 
"The defense looked good tonight, they were able to keep the ball out of the box, forcing Jacksonville State to take shots from 25-30 yards out. I'm extremely pleased with the performance of our defenders and their ability to break down JSU's offense," Wheelock said.
 
With 20 minutes left in regulation, senior captain Alexandra Skidmore and Shekinah Wells would both assist Wiest off a deep ball from the keeper, as Wiest sent it soaring into the net for ULM's only goal of the match.
 
"The build up on Cassidy's goal was beautiful," said Wheelock. "We were able to switch the point of attack and feed Skidmore a pass. She drove up the field and placed a perfect pass at the foot of Wells who flicked it on to Cassidy, giving her a chance to score her first collegiate goal. I'm proud of Cass and her hard work during preseason to make it happen."
 
Taylor Altieri would send a shot off with only four minutes left in regulation but her attempt went high, it would be ULM's last opportunity to tie the game.
 
The Warhawks were heavily outshot in Jacksonville, managing only three shots on goal to the Gamecock's 13. Freshmen Mackenzie Bell, Gaiffas, and Wiest would be three Warhawks to shoot their shot against JSU's goalkeeper.
 
 ULM turned the ball over 12 times by way of fouls and offsides calls. "We need to work on being more disciplined," Wheelock said. "We made some avoidable fouls and bad decisions which gave up set pieces, two of which they took advantage of."
 
"JSU is a good team who knows it's strengths and uses them to its advantage. Now, we have to clear our heads, and refocus our minds on Sunday's opponent."
 
ULM drops to 0-1 after its second straight loss to Jacksonville State. The Warhawks will get back on the road for a Sunday afternoon match at Southern Mississippi (Aug. 19).
 
Visit ULMWarhawks.com for full box score, statistics, and post-game coverage. Follow along with all things Warhawk Soccer on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @ULM_Soccer.