CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – UNCG exploded for a season-high five goals Friday, opening Southern Conference play with an emphatic 5-2 win over Chattanooga.
UNCG improves to 6-1-1, 1-0-0 in the SoCon with the win, while the Lady Mocs fall to 2-7-0, 0-1-0.
Five different players scored for the Spartans, who beat Chattanooga for the sixth straight time.
Freshman Stine Schoening scored the first goal of her career – which would turn out to be the game-winner – at the 76:51 mark, putting UNCG up 3-1 and setting off a flurry of late scoring.
Sophomore Jessi Gulledge scored her second goal of the season at the 80:57 mark, giving UNCG a 4-1 lead. Tabitha Padgett and Morgan Kennedy picked up assists on the play.
Jenn Partenheimer tallied her third goal of the season just 28 seconds later, marking the second time in a week the Spartans have scored consecutive goals less than a minute apart. Freshman Kristen Schmidbauer and sophomore Lauren Hein scored 49 seconds apart in UNCG's 3-1 win over Old Dominion on Sunday.
Chattanooga scored its second goal of the evening at the 82:55 mark, as Andria Aurand's strike capped a stretch of four goals in a wild six minutes, four seconds.
Schmidbauer was the one who got the scoring started Friday, as she converted a Jaimey Etten pass for her second goal of the season to put UNCG on top 1-0 in the 13th minute.
Etten drilled home a direct free kick to make it a 2-0 game just over three minutes later, and UNCG would take a 2-0 lead into the half.
Chattanooga got on the board in the 61st minute, with Becca Smith – who led the SoCon in scoring last season – netting her second goal of the season to pull the Lady Mocs within one at 2-1.
Kelsey Kearney picked up the win in the net, making one save and allowing two goals in 83:28 of work. Alex Perry worked the final 6:32.
Freshman Taylor Mangrum earned the start for Chattanooga, allowing two first-half goals and making five saves in taking the loss. Sophomore Taylor Davidson made three saves and allowed three second-half goals.
UNCG's five goals were its most since a 6-0 win over Appalachian State in the first round of the Southern Conference tournament on Nov. 2, 2008.
At 6-1-1, the Spartans are off to their best start since the 1997 campaign, when UNCG opened 7-1-0 en route to a school-record 19 wins.
"It was a good result on the road," UNCG coach Eddie Radwanski said. "It's always good to open up conference play with a 'W.' We created lots of opportunities. If I were to be constructive, I'd like to see us put a few more of those balls away, but sometimes you can't be greedy. We got it done and we're going to get ready to drive down to play a very difficult Samford team on Sunday."
The Spartans return to action Sunday at Samford in Birmingham, Ala. The Bulldogs, who entered the SoCon in 2008, are the only league team with a winning record against UNCG. The teams played to a scoreless draw in 2008 and Samford took a 2-1 win last season. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. Eastern time.
AGATE
UNCG 5, Chattanooga 2
Goals by period 1 2 Tot
UNCG................ 2 3 - 5
Chattanooga......... 0 2 - 2
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 12:31 UNCG Kristen Schmidbauer (Jaimey Etten)
2. 15:48 UNCG Jaimey Etten (unassisted)
3. 60:52 UTC Becca Smith (Donna-Kay Henry)
4. 76:51 UNCG Stine Schoening (unassisted)
5. 80:57 UNCG Jessi Gulledge (Tabitha Padgett,Morgan Kennedy)
6. 81:25 UNCG Jenn Partenheimer (unassisted)
7. 82:55 UTC Andria Aurand (Lauren Wilson)
Shots: UNCG 24, Chattanooga 11
Saves: UNCG 1 (Kelsey Kearney 1), Chattanooga 8 (Taylor Mangrum 5; Taylor Davidson 3)
Corner kicks: UNCG 5, Chattanooga 2
Fouls: UNCG 15, Chattanooga 10
- UNCG -
