SAC Championship Central
Indianapolis, Ind.----The Wingate University women's soccer team is ranked fourth in this week's
NCAA Southeast region poll, which was released Wednesday afternoon. The Bulldogs, who were second in last week's poll, drop two spots after picking up a pair of victories. Wingate is 13-2-3 overall, finishing second in the SAC regular season with an 8-2-1 conference record.
Lenoir-Rhyne is the number one team in this week's regional poll, followed by Columbus State, Armstrong and Wingate. Belmont Abbey and Clayton State round out the top six, followed by Queens, North Georgia, Lander and Lees-McRae.
The Bulldogs are the number two seed in this week's Food Lion SAC Tournament. Wingate advanced to the semifinals with a 1-0 victory over Newberry Tuesday night. The Bulldogs will take on third-seeded Tusculum in the SAC semifinals Friday night at 7 p.m. in Rock Hill, S.C.
Wingate and Tusculum meet in the SAC Tournament semifinals for the second consecutive year and third time in last four years. The Bulldogs prevailed in penalty kicks last season, advancing to their third consecutive SAC Tournament championship match. Wingate defeated Tusculum 3-1 in 2010 to advance to its first SAC title match. Current senior
Chandler Murphy (Pawleys Island, S.C.) registered a goal in the contest, while redshirt junior
Brandi Baldwin (Indian Trail, N.C.) had an assist.
Wingate trailed 1-0 in last season's contest with under 10 minutes to go, but earned a penalty kick. 2013 graduate
Kelly Moldenhauer scored to tie it the match 1-1. After two scoreless overtimes, the match went to penalty kicks. Wingate did not miss a PK, winning 4-2 to advance to the SAC title match.
The Bulldogs and Pioneers met earlier this season in Tennessee, with Tusculum prevailing 1-0.
Amy Neltner scored the lone goal of the contest 8:36 into the first half to give TC the victory. The Pioneers held the Bulldogs to a season-low four shots in the contest.
The Bulldogs had seven players earn All-SAC honors, led by two-time SAC Player of the Year
Jade Montgomery (Monroe, N.C.). The 2012 first team All-American leads the SAC with 13 goals, nine assists and 35 points. The nation's leader with 21 goals last season, Montgomery ranks 11th nationally in points, 14th in goals 16th in assists. The three-time All-SAC selection has 47 career goals and 17 assists.
Montgomery was joined on the first team by Murphy and classmate
Taryn Grivois (Murietta, Calif.). Grivois has two goals and six assists on the year, ranking third in the SAC in assists. In addition to playing a key role on the Wingate defense, Murphy has four goals and three assists on the season, ranking third on the team with 11 points.
Baldwin and freshman
Macy Franklin (Conover, N.C.) earned second team All-SAC honors at as defenders. The two have been instrumental in the dominant Wingate defense over the course of the season. The Bulldogs have allowed a league-low 12 goals this year, leading the SAC with a stifling 0.64 goals against average. Wingate allowed only six goals in SAC play, while piling up 11 shutouts this season. Baldwin has a goal and an assist this season, while Franklin has also netted a goal.
A pair of Wingate freshmen earned honorable mention All-SAC honors. Forward
Brooke Howell (Charlotte, N.C.) is second on the team with seven goals, adding three assists to rank second on the team with 17 points. She ranks fifth in the league in goals and eighth in points. She is joined by midfielder
Kaitlyn Brunworth (Littleton, Colo.). The freshman has started Wingate's last 15 contests, scoring three goals on the year. She scored the lone goal in Tuesday night's 1-0 victory in the SAC Tournament quarterfinals.
The winner of the Wingate-Tusculum match will advance to Sunday's championship game. They will face the winner of the Lenoir-Rhyne vs. Lincoln Memorial contest. Wingate and Lenoir-Rhyne have met in the last three SAC championship contests. Sunday's championship game will take place at 4 p.m. in Rock Hill.
NCAA Southeast Region Rankings
Rnk. School In-Region Overall
1 Lenoir-Rhyne 13-3-1 13-3-1
2 Columbus State 13-4-0 13-5-0
3 Armstrong 11-3-2 11-3-3
4 Wingate 13-2-3 13-2-3
5 Belmont Abbey 13-3-1 13-3-1
6 Clayton State 10-3-4 10-3-4
7 Queens (N.C.) 10-5-3 10-5-3
8 North Georgia 12-4-1 12-4-1
9 Lander 12-4-0 12-4-0
10 Lees-McRae 10-6-1 10-6-1
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
Wingate University, ranked as the 8th "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,000 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, graduate degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport administration, and doctorates in pharmacy, physical therapy and education.
With a 14 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit
www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity.
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past seven years. For more information, go to
www.wingate.edu.
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing private colleges in the 2000's with 57 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate's 57 Academic All-America® honorees are number one during this millennium. Wingate's 66 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information on WU athletics, go to
www.wingatebulldogs.com.
