FLORENCE, SC – Junior midfielder Yasmin Bunter and sophomore forward Elizabeth Asare combined on what proved to be the match-winning goal and Francis Marion University held off a late rally by Prairie View A&M University to claim a 3-2 win, Friday night (Sept. 21) in non-conference women’s soccer action.

Francis Marion remains unbeaten on its new Hartzler Field in four starts and ups its overall mark to 5-4-1, eclipsing the win total of last season.  The Patriots will kick off a three-match road swing when they play at Charlotte on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Although FMU quickly registered three shots on goal in the first five minutes, and dominated possession, the Lady Panthers (2-6-0) shocked the home crowd by scoring on their first shot in the sixth minute.  Yosselyn Aguilar fed a through ball to Angie Guillory on the right side who then completed a cross to Navyd Diaz in front of the Patriot goal.  Diaz converted a 9-yard shot to put Prairie View up 1-0.

Francis Marion again dominated possession, registering five shots over the next 10 minutes, but the Patriots struggled to put the ball in the net.  Finally at 17:05, freshman defender Kristyn Leung launched a through ball from beyond midfield that found Asare even with the last defender and the Canadian native dribbled in and scored on a 13-yard shot into the left side of the goal.  For Asare it was her team-leading fifth goal of 2012.

Senior Kelly Kady gave FMU the lead at 2-1 in the 36th minute. Bunter played a through ball to sophomore Dominique Evans who crossed the ball the Kady for a 10-yard shot.  It was Kady’s ninth career tally in 50 appearances.

The advantage moved to 3-1 only 2:17 into the second stanza when Asare fed Bunter for an 18-yard attempt from directly in front of the goal.  Bunter now has 13 career scores in 43 appearances.

Prairie View trimmed the margin to 3-2 with 1:47 remaining on a goal by junior Maria Sanchez.  The sequence began with a service from the left side by Katherine Sheppard and the ball deflected off the head of Debbie Arguelles before falling to the feet of Sanchez only a couple of yards off the goal line.

That proved to be the last shot of the contest by either side.

Francis Marion outshot the Lady Panthers 20-5 and held a 4-1 advantage in corner kicks.  In a battle of goalkeepers who are both nationally ranked in saves, FMU freshman Taylor O’Berry registered two stops, while Prairie View A&M net minder Bianca Garza made seven saves.

The next home match for FMU will be Oct. 10 against Montreat College.

Francis Marion Univ. (5-4-1) def.  Prairie View A&M (2-6-0) 3-2

Date: Sep 21, 2012  Attendance: 133
Weather: Mostly clear, 81 degrees

Goals by period            1  2  Tot
------------------------------------
Prairie View A&M....  1  1 -  2
Francis Marion Univ.  2  1 -  3
 
SCORING SUMMARY:
0-1.   5:37 PVAM Navyd Diaz (1) (Angie Guillory;Yosselyn Aguilar) - pass ahead, short cross, 9-yd shot
1-1.  17:05 FMU_W Elizabeth Asare (5) (Kristyn Leung) - long through ball from beyond midfield, 13-yd shot to left side
2-1.  35:39 FMU_W Kelly Kady (3) (Dominique Evans;Yasmin Bunter) - through ball, cross from right, 10-yd shot
3-1.  47:17 FMU_W Yasmin Bunter (4) (Elizabeth Asare) - 18-yd shot from straight on
3-2.  88:13 PVAM Maria Sanchez (1) (Katherine Sheppard;Debbie Arguelles) - cross, deflection off head, shot

Shots: Prairie View A&M 5, Francis Marion Univ. 20 ; Saves: Prairie View A&M 7 (Bianca Garza 7), Francis Marion Univ. 2 (Taylor O'Berry 2)

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