by Jordan Harirchi
The UNF women’s soccer team couldn’t seize victory Nov. 4 and failed to make its first-ever Atlantic Sun tournament final.
The Ospreys lost 2-1 to Florida Gulf Coast University, drawing a season filled with ups and downs to a close.
The Ospreys played a strong game against the top-seeded FGCU Eagles. FGCU barely outshot the Ospreys 11-9. In the end, the two extra shots proved to be the difference.
The first half was rather uneventful — only six shots were fired between both teams.
FGCU pounced on an early lead in the second half when FGCU forward Gina Petracco tapped a ball past an Osprey defender, and Shannen Wacker caught up to the well-placed pass and chipped the ball over Osprey goalkeeper Megan Dorsey in the 50th minute. FGCU went two goals ahead less than six minutes later after Petracco cleaned up a ball Dorsey deflected.
In the 81st minute, freshman forward Kathryn Shafer scored her second goal of the tournament, on another great individual effort, to narrow the deficit.
The Ospreys failed to create any opportunities in the final nine minutes of the game. Their historic season came to an end when the Ospreys couldn’t claw their way back one last time.
FGCU beat the Mercer Bears Nov. 6 to take home the conference championship.
The Ospreys cap a season in which it won its first A-Sun conference playoff game. The Ospreys finish the season 9-10-2 overall, the most wins the team has racked up since 2006.
Despite not finishing the way the players hoped it would, many players will return to the young team next year.
The Ospreys will lose five seniors, two of which were starters for the team.
The departure of Sam Keyes, a powerhouse in the middle of a defense that averaged giving up 1.48 goals a game, will hurt the Ospreys the most. On offense the Ospreys will lose the tenacity and aggressive play senior midfielder Vladana Petricevic brought to the pitch. Keyes started in 20 games in 2011, while Petricevic started 12.
The Ospreys brought back the three players who provided the bulk of the 2011 and 2010’s offense. Junior forward Michele Larrinaga and sophomore forwards Lauren Hopfensperger and Carolina Lencina will all return. The trio tallied 34 of the team’s 58 goals scored in the past two years.
Sophomore goalkeeper Megan Dorsey brings back a 1.44 goal per game average to a stout defense. Other key returners are sophomore forward Thea Linkfield, sophomore midfielder Keara Murphy, sophomore defender Taylor Gillespie, junior midfielders Sadie McLean and Kathryne Husted and junior defender Martha Tracey — all starters on the 2011 squad.
Sophomore midfielder and starter Heather Botelho will also return from an ACL tear next year. The injury caused Botelho to miss all of conference play and the conference playoffs.
The returning players aren’t happy with the results of this year but look forward to the bright future ahead, Tracey said.
“The team’s goal of winning a conference championship didn’t happen and provided some disappointment,” Tracey said. “But next year’s team will be stronger than this year’s team.”
