The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s soccer team posted a 4-1 win over Tennessee Wesleyan on a beautiful Saturday afternoon at Finley Stadium.
“We worked this spring on building the ball from the back to the middle and then creating some chances,” Chattanooga head coach Gavin McKinney said. “I thought you saw some really good pictures today of the progression from the beginning of the spring to the end.”
The Mocs gave up an early goal to Tennessee Wesleyan but responded quickly with a goal from Brandy Herrera.
Hannah Torbett sent a shot across the field and Herrera’s shot from beyond the box arced over the keeper’s outstretched hand to tie it up.
“We kind of fell asleep on the first goal,” McKinney said. “That hasn’t been us all year. Our back four is very good. We didn’t put our heads down and I thought our response was good.”
Chattanooga’s second goal, the game winner, came off a corner from Ellie Myrick to Abby Linder in the box at the goal to make it 2-1. Before the end of the first half, Mackenzie Gregg picked up a pass from Emily Moseley and the Mocs carried a 3-1 advantage into the break.
The second half saw just one goal from the Mocs. Peyton McCollum, on a 1 v. 1, touched a pass between her opponent’s legs, picked it up on the other side and drove in her shot from the near post to make it a 4-1 game on an unassisted goal.
Chattanooga dominated the offensive end of the game, allowing Tennessee Wesleyan just the one shot early in the game and getting more than 30 shots over the 90-minute match.
“We created a lot of chances,” McKinney said. “In other games we might not get as many chances and there’s still some developing to do.
“Once the ball does get into the final third, we’ve got to be patient and not force the final pass and even the finish for that matter. It’s something we’ll continue to develop. The toughest part of the game is to create goal scoring opportunities and to take them.”
The Mocs closed out the spring with three wins, a tie and one loss.