DECATUR, Ga.—Caitlynn Croft's (LaGrange, Ga.) strike in the 78th minute pushed Agnes Scott Women's Soccer to a 2-1 victory at home over Oglethorpe on Saturday afternoon. The Scotties overcame an early 1-0 deficit with a goal right before halftime and kept the game even until Croft lofted one over the head of the Stormy Petrel keeper for the eventual game-winner.
Agnes Scott improves to 2-3-1 this season, while Oglethorpe sees a losing streak move to two games and a 3-3 overall mark.
Oglethorpe was the aggressor for a majority of the first half and it showed on the stat sheet as the Stormy Petrels registered the first seven shots in the period. The persistence paid off in the form of a goal in the 18th minute after the Scotties turned the ball over deep in their own end. Tress Southard (Mount Pleasant, S.C.) was the beneficiary of the turnover and put the Stormy Petrels on the scoreboard with a sliding ball past Abby Ackerson (Hoover, Ala.) to the right side.
The Stormy Petrels continued to be threatening in their offensive third, but Ackerson was a star in net for the Scotties. The sophomore repeatedly made saves to keep Oglethorpe from finding the back of the net again.
A rather uneventful 40 minutes for the Scotties changed in a moment when senior Aina Stratton (Lake Toxaway, N.C.) hit a laser beam from 25 yards out. Zoey Perchaluk (Fort Erie, Ont.) found Stratton with a ball up the middle. Stratton was able to stop the ball and see the defender run by here, just giving enough room for a look at the net. Stratton was able to set her feet and launch a ball just under the crossbar for the equalizer.
The second half played rather even as both teams traded opportunities left unfulfilled until Croft delivered a gut punch to the Stormy Petrels.
A scrum in the 18-yard box near the Oglethorpe goal gave way to an attempted clear, however, possession went straight to the feet of Croft from 25 yards out. The senior midfielder took a moment before using her left foot to finesse a shot into the top left corner, beating reserve keeper Alexis Hutson-Hamric (Taylor, S.C.).
The Stormy Petrels got two more good looks at tying the game over the final 10 minutes, but Agnes' defense had just enough energy to finish off the match on a muggy afternoon.
Oglethorpe outshot Agnes Scott 21-10 for the game, but Ackerson's 11 saves kept the Scotties afloat. Both of the Stormy Petrel keepers had one goal against and one save. Eleven stops was a season-high for Ackerson and the third-highest output of her career.
The Scotties and Stormy Petrels are now even in the lifetime series at 7-7-3.
The Scotties return to action on Tuesday when they host Sewanee at 4:30 p.m.