Chants Face High Point in Big South Semis on Friday
11/6/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
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CONWAY - The Coastal Carolina women's soccer team continues its pursuit of a conference title Friday night when it faces High Point in the semifinals of the Big South Championship. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Bryan Park in Greensboro, N.C.
The second-seeded Chanticleers (11-7-2) have won three in a row and are coming off their first conference tournament victory since 2008. Third-seeded High Point (11-4-3), meanwhile, has won six straight games, including a 1-0 quarterfinal victory over Winthrop last Sunday.
Coastal won the regular-season matchup between the teams 1-0 on Oct. 4 as freshman Brenna Leftwich scored less than three minutes into double overtime. That victory gave CCU the No. 2 seed when the teams tied for second place. High Point held a 19-12 shot advantage in the contest, one of just two matches against Big South foes in which the Chanticleers were outshot.
HPU led the Big South in shots and shots on goal during the conference season, while Coastal was second-best in fewest shots and goals allowed. The Chants also ranked third with 16 goals, while the Panthers tied for fifth with 15. Senior forward Jacky Kessler led a balanced High Point offense with four goals and 10 points on the season, while four other players each had three goals. Freshmen Jordan Beets and Alex Persiani split time in goal, combining for seven shutouts with just 45 saves.
Big South Attacking Player of the Year Kacey Kelley has 12 goals and five assists for the Chanticleers, and with four more shots will tie the program's single-season record of 102, held by Bobbie Parsons. She has recorded at least one point in eight of the 11 games against Big South teams. Fellow senior Shelby Evans is second on the team with four goals and 11 points. Defensively, Coastal has not allowed more than one goal in 11 consecutive games since the start of conference play, with shutouts in five of those matches.
Top-seed Liberty (13-4-1) and No. 4 seed Campbell (8-7-3) will meet in Friday's first semifinal match at 4:30 p.m. The winners will then play for the Big South championship and an NCAA Tournament berth on Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $5 per day and are available only at the Bryan Park ticket office.
Coastal is seeking its third appearance in the Big South title game and its first-ever tournament championship.
