Third-ranked Westmont Women’s Soccer suffered its first loss of the season in the Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament championship game. The Warriors fell to No. 6 Concordia by a score of 2-1.
Megan Daniels scored both goals for the Eagles.
“From the beginning, we knew it was going to be a good test for us,” said Westmont head coach Kristi Kiely. “They were more effective in front of goal today, and we paid the price for it.”
The Warriors (15-1-3) had their chances, outshooting the Eagles 20-14 and holding a 9-4 advantage in shots on goal.
Daniels put the Eagles ahead in the 25th minute. Left alone in the box, she headed in a cross from the right sideline by Brooke Springer.
The Warriors got the equalizer in the 78th minute when Mallory Mitchell grabbed possession of the ball, beat two defenders and fired off a shot into the left side of the netting.
Just four minutes later, Daniels scored the goal winner for Concordia (16-0-3). After receiving a through pass from Lauren Nanez, Daniels dribbled around Westmont goalkeeper Lindsey Smith and fired into an empty net.
“This is the only loss on our record and at this point in the season it is the only one we can have,” noted Kiely. “From here on out, if you lose you are done. We will see how we respond to it, but it has to be a positive response or we are done.”
The Warriors will learn on Sunday who their opening-round opponent will be in the NAIA National Tournament. Westmont is expected to host one of 15 opening-round games played around the nation on Nov. 23. The winners will join the host team at the NAIA Championship Final Site in Orange Beach, Ala., for the remaining tournament games from December 2-7.
