No. 6 McNeese Upsets Defending Champion, No. 3 Abilene Christian
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CONWAY, Ark. – No. 6 McNeese confirmed that there will be no repeat champion at the Southland Conference Soccer Tournament, knocking out defending tournament titlist and third-seeded Abilene Christian on Wednesday afternoon.
It was a quiet first half as both squads tallied just four shots each, but ACU managed to put three of theirs on goal. McNeese net-minder Gabrielle Christy got her hands on all three to keep the match scoreless through the first 45 minutes.
The Wildcats got on the board in the 59
th minute after Christina Arteaga dropped a corner kick right in front of freshman Caylen Wright, who finished it off to make it 1-0.
Just five minutes later, the Cowboys leveled the score as Mariah Ruelas found Rachel Young on a cross, and Young drilled one past Rachel Johnson.
In the 74
th minute, Ruelas scored one on her own after winning the ball from the defender and lofting one past Johnson’s left side for a 2-1 advantage.
McNeese will face No. 2 Northwestern State in the semifinal round at 4 p.m. Friday.