CHARLOTTE, N.C. (November 23, 2024) – Carolina Ascent Football Club dropped its fall home finale to Dallas Trinity FC, 0-1, on Saturday evening at American Legion Memorial Stadium. Carolina Ascent plays one more match this fall on the road against Fort Lauderdale United FC on Saturday, December 14 at 7:30 p.m.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Dallas Trinity took an early lead in the fourth minute with a goal by #15 Samantha Meza. The Dallas offense put Carolina under a lot of pressure early as #1 Meagan McClelland had to make a quick reaction save in the 14th minute.
#5 Jaydah Bedoya had a dangerous breakaway on goal in the 21st minute, but her shot on goal was thwarted at the last moment and sent out of bounds.
Back on defense, #12 Sydney Studer made a crucial slide tackle to prevent another Dallas goal in the 34th minute. #4 Vicky Bruce made a similar play in the 43rd minute, getting a touch in to send the ball away from goal.
Possibly the biggest chance for Carolina Ascent in the first half came in the 38th minute. Bedoya played a ball forward on the left wing to #15 Kathrynn González who passed it centrally to #9 Mia Corbin. Under pressure, Corbin found #7 Jill Aguilera open to her right, but Aguilera’s shot went wide.
Another similar chance came in the 43rd minute as #21 Renée Guion sent a long ball towards González. She flicked a header on to Aguilera whose shot was deflected out of bounds for a corner kick. The frenzy on the set piece almost proved to be the breakthrough moment for Carolina Ascent, but the Trinity went into halftime with the lead.
Halftime: Carolina Ascent FC 0, Dallas Trinity FC 1.
Carolina Ascent immediately started attacking in the second half with a pair of back heel flicks by Bedoya and González which then resulted in a cross from #2 Josie Studer to Aguilera. Her header landed just wide of the goal. #3 Giovanna DeMarco struck a powerful, curling shot in the 56th minute, forcing a save from the Dallas goalkeeper, as Carolina searched for an equalizer.
On the other end, McClelland kept Carolina Ascent in the match with a reaction save in the 60th minute on a Dallas attempt off a cross.
In the 77th minute, González had another dangerous chance on goal with a shot that sailed just high of the crossbar. Corner kicks continued to provide opportunities for the hosts as Bedoya sent a shot towards goal in the 87th minute after a pass from #14 Taylor Porter, but it was blocked.
Fulltime: Carolina Ascent FC 0, Dallas Trinity FC 1.
NOTABLES:
- #6 Maria Tapia made her professional debut. She signed a USL Academy Contract in October.
QUOTES:
Head Coach Philip Poole
On how the game could have been different if the team did not concede so early
“There’s no way of saying really. If you concede a bad goal at any point in the match it will cost you, but overall today, I think their performance was really good and we created a lot of great chances. I think our final action, final pass, everything just wasn’t good enough today, and we know that. In terms of the game plan and sticking to it in areas we knew we would be able to exploit. We saw it, we did it. Just that final piece has to be better.”
On giving the ball up in the middle frequently. Did you see it the same way?
“Yes and no. We really had an emphasis on playing through the midfield third and taking chances and risks. When you take those chances there will be some turnovers. Probably one too many, but honestly our best football came right down the middle. We had lots of combinations, two or three passes and finding Jill (Aguilera) or Jaydah (Bedoya) to get in behind them. So it’s a risk, reward.”
On the psychology of the team after two consecutive losses
“They’re good. They know they’ve played well. They know they’ve created chances. They know they executed the game plan. You look at it sometimes, and that game’s gone for us earlier in the season, and this game it didn’t. I think we created enough chances to win that game. Dallas is a good side and we know that, so I think it’s a good game. We created chances and the players don’t need me to tell them that. They know it.”
#4 Vicky Bruce
On how the team can keep the morale high after back-to-back losses
“The last loss wasn’t our best performance, and we can definitely learn from that. Today, I think we had a lot of quality moments, and even though we didn’t get the result we wanted, there’s a lot to build from and move forward with. There was a lot of good football that happened in a lot of good possession, so if we can finish the chances we create and be a little cleaner in our own box to not concede anything early on, we’ll be good.”
#6 Maria Tapia
On making her debut
“I was super excited. It was really cool to go in, do everything we worked on, and give something to the team.”
#15 Kathrynn González
On how the team kept pressuring on offense despite missing good chances
“Everybody wants to win. We were down 1-0 and hungry for a goal.”
NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE:
Carolina Ascent FC plays its final match of the fall schedule on Saturday, December 14 at 7:30 p.m. on the road against Fort Lauderdale United FC.
