The lady Owls could not hold on to their lead as they fell 3-1 to Samford University on Friday, Sept. 10.
Kennesaw State University (4-4-1) was able to get on the scoreboard early in the first half and create pressure on the opponent’s defense, who looked out of the sync early in the game.
Senior Cassidy Kemp scored what would be the Owls’ only goal of the game at the 15-minute mark. Kemp has scored four goals this season, making her the second-best scorer on the team behind Shannon Driscoll.
Samford’s Abriella Argueta tied the game eight minutes later, and then her team took the lead after a 30-yard strike one minute before halftime.
The Bulldogs scored the final goal of the game 20 minutes into the second half and sealed the win. Samford improves to a 4-2-2 record for the season.
KSU had a strong first half. They outshot their opponent 8-5 and maintained possession of the ball while also adding four corner kicks.
“We came out and played well and got a nice early goal,” head coach Benji Walton said.
After scoring their last-minute goal before halftime, the Bulldogs took control of the game and never looked back. They took better care of the ball and didn’t give it away as much as they had in the first half. Samford also outshot the Owls 11-3 in the second half.
“We made a couple mistakes and had some mental lapses, and good teams like Samford will punish you when you make a mistake,” Walton said. “We played well but have to eliminate the mental mistakes and do a better job of closing out the half.”
Kennesaw looks to bounce back Saturday, Sept. 24 as they open up ASUN Conference play at 7 p.m. against the Lipscomb Bison (6-3-1) at Fifth Third Bank Stadium. The game will also be broadcast on at ESPN3 for those who can’t make it to the game.
