Freshmen Trio Help Ospreys Topple Winthrop

Friday, August 31

Jacksonville, Fla.

7:00 p.m.

University of North Florida

2-3-0

Winthrop

2-1-1

Winthrop

North Florida

Kendra Hoffman kicks a ball toward the goal

8/31/2018 10:43:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

By: North Florida Athletics

Winthrop vs UNF Final Boxscore

JACKSONVILLE -- Led by goals from a trio of freshmen, the North Florida women's soccer team picked up its second consecutive shutout victory with a 3-0 decision over Winthrop on Friday night at Hodges Stadium.

GOALS
UNF - 12' Kendra Hoffman (Assist: Thais Reiss)
UNF - 29' Julia Martin (Assist: Brandi Walker)
UNF - 52' JJ Bryant (Assist: Kendra Hoffman)

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Winthrop had the early chance as the Eagle's leading scorer Gabi Hull had a 1v1 chance against Osprey keeper Rhiannon Conelley in the 10th minute but had her attempt snubbed out by a tremendous save
- Two minutes later, North Florida tallied its first goal when Thais Reiss snaked through a pair of defenders on the right side and slid a lead pass across the box and found the waiting foot of Kendra Hoffman, who slammed a one-time shot into the right side of the net
- The Eagles saw another scoring chance thwarted when Osprey defender Hollyn Knight blocked a shot in front of an open goal in the 23rd minute
- The Ospreys added a second tally in the opening period as Brandi Walker led a counter attack and slipped a pass thru the middle of the defense that Julia Martin outraced the Winthrop keeper to and chipped a shot over the outstretched hands of the diving netminder
- Just seven minutes into second half action, UNF recorded the final tally of the match as Hoffman served a perfectly placed corner kick to the back side of the 6-yard box and JJ Bryant smashed home a header into the back of the net

QUICK KICKS
- UNF's three goals marked the most in a match since a 4-3 overtime win over USC Upstate in 2016 (Oct. 9)
- Marked the largest margin of victory and shutout margin for North Florida since a 3-0 victory against NJIT in 2015 (Oct. 9)
- All three UNF goals were scored by freshmen with Kendra Hoffman, Julia Martin and JJ Bryant each notching their first career tallies
- The three scores matched UNF's scoring output over the opening four matches of the season
- Hoffman led the way for North Florida in the match scoring three points with a goal and assist
- North Florida saw 25 players appear on the pitch with five players making their season debuts including Brooke Linen, who got on the field for the first time since 2015 after a pair of season ending injuries the past two years
- Sophomore keeper Rhiannon Conelley recorded her second straight shutout and the 9th clean sheet of her career
- The Ospreys posted an 18-5 margin in shots taken for the game
- UNF improves to 2-3-0 on the season while Winthrop suffers its first loss of the year (2-1-1)
- Win keeps UNF undefeated all-time against the Eagles (2-0)

CONFER COMMENTS
"I am extremely proud of the effort tonight. It was a total team effort and it was good to get a couple early goals that gave us some breathing room. It was great to see two players come back from injuries with Brooke Linen getting her first minutes in almost two years. She has worked really hard so it was really special. The other is Sara DeLucca coming back from an ankle injury and she stepped in and gave us some great minutes. Really pleased for those two. It was an outstanding day for our freshmen class with three of them scoring their first career goals. It's exciting for them and also shows the depth of this team. We finished our chances and were able to rest a few players so now we turn our attention to Sunday's match against Manhattan." - Head coach Robin Confer

UP NEXT
The Ospreys conclude their four-match home stand on Sunday against Manhattan at 1 p.m.