Women’s soccer extends winning streak against Memphis
USF Women’s Soccer extended its winning streak to three with a 2-1 victory over Memphis on Thursday.
South Florida (6-6-0, 3-1-0 AAC) was able to outlast Memphis’ (4-3-5, 0-0-4 AAC) aggressive start. In the match, the Tigers took 13 shots and jumped to a 1-0 lead after a goal in the 19th minute. Coach Denise Schlite-Brown gave credit to their opponent in that aspect.
“They throw forwards, they press and they create corner kicks. And to be fair, they can’t sustain that all game.” Schlite-Brown said. “When the chips are down, they really get after it but we did know that was coming. We did talk about the onslaught.”
After conceding a goal in the early going, sophomore forward Serita Thurton scored in the 43rd minute. Thurton’s goal evened the score 1-1 going into the second half and Schite-Brown called it “a reward for her.”
“[Serita has] put in a lot of hours and hard work. It hasn’t always resulted in the goals that she’s created but tonight, she got one,” she said.
The Bulls were able to capitalize off of that momentum going into the second half. In the 46th minute, sophomore striker Chiara Hahn put one into the net off a penalty kick, giving South Florida a 2-1 lead.
Hahn’s five goals on the year leads the Bulls. She continued her success from the Sept. 29 game against SMU in which she was awarded AAC offensive player of the week.
Another standout was senior goalkeeper Sydney Martinez. Along with five saves, she passed USF alumni Katarina Elliot to become the program’s career leader in goalie minutes.
Among strong individual performances, the team as a whole has seemed to have hit its stride. The Bulls’ current three-game win streak is the longest of the season.
“It definitely does feel that way. I think we have gotten into a good flow,” Martinez said. “We all feel very nice now and I think it shows that we have a long way to go through the season if we’ve already won three back-to-back.”
The Bulls will head to Greenville, North Carolina to play ECU on Oct. 16 at 1 p.m.