LITTLE ROCK – The Little Rock soccer team (3-5-2, 3-3-2 Sun Belt) wrapped up the regular season with a win, defeating ULM (0-9, 0-8 Sun Belt) 2-1 in overtime on Senior Day.
After the Warhawks got on the board first off of a header on a well-placed corner kick in the 16th minute, the Trojans reacted quickly. Senior
Morgan Smocovich made the most of Little Rock's first and only corner kick of the night just seven minutes later, sending the ball flying right to fellow senior
Doro Greulich, who directed it in off her head right in front of the goal and into the far corner of the net.
"It shows you how important the seniors are to our team," said head coach
Mark Foster. "When they're on it and playing to the best of their ability they take our team to another level."
Though the Trojans were noticeably livelier coming out of halftime, controlling most of the possession in the second half, they couldn't quite connect, forcing overtime at the Coleman Sports Complex. Little Rock regrouped and went all in, putting together their best combination of passes and creating two or three of the best chances of the entire game throughout the next few minutes.
After senior
Bergros Asgeirsdottir set up a pass forward,
Abril Lucio ended the game with a beautiful shot just inside the box three minutes into extra time. Taking her time to place it well, the junior's ball shot over the ULM goalkeeper's head and into the top left corner for the decision maker.
"I think where Abril is as a player is where we are as a team," remarked Coach Foster. "Loads of potential, loads of talent, but we want a little bit more consistency. That was a wonderful goal, but we know she can do that, we see that every day in training. So hopefully her doing it again in a game and executing it, that gives her confidence to do it next week in the tournament."
Overall, Coach Foster was pleased with the challenging game that the Warhawks provided ahead of next week's Sun Belt Championship. "Lot of respect goes to ULM and how well-organized they were tonight and how well they played. They went one-nil up and at the time they deserved it. They came out much better those first 20 minutes. We had to show some character tonight and I'm glad it was there when it was needed."
The regular season ends for the Trojans after barely two months and just 10 matches, about half of what the team usually plays going into postseason. However, the team has grown in confidence and chemistry throughout the short slate and is ready to head to the Sun Belt Tournament.
"It's been a hard season," said Coach Foster. "We've had to call games off, we've had to postpone games, we've had to shut down the team and take a break. It's been hard but the girls have dug in really deep and shown a real maturity and great attitude about things, so they deserve a tournament after everything they've been through. If we can go down there with the right mindset and confidence, we can do some damage next week."
Little Rock will travel to Foley, Alabama for the first round of the Sun Belt Tournament this Monday, Nov. 2. The Trojans are the fourth seed in the West division and will play East divisional fifth seed Georgia Southern at 1:30 p.m. for a chance to advance to the quarterfinals. The game is set to be broadcast on ESPN+ for fans that want to follow along from home.
For the latest information on Little Rock Soccer, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockSOC on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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