Mercer Women's soccer ended their season with a loss to the top-seeded Samford Bulldogs in the semifinals of the Southern Conference Tournament Sunday. The final score was 1-0.
The Bears began their post-season run with a 7-6-5 overall record in the regular season and a 3-2-4 record in conference play.
The quarter and semifinal rounds of the Southern Conference tournament were hosted by the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, Samford and Furman, with Mercer playing on Samford’s track and soccer stadium in Birmingham, Alabama.
As the No. 5 seed, the Bears didn’t have to play until match four on Friday against the No. 4 seed, East Tennessee State University. Mercer's first game against the Buccaneers back on Sept. 26 ended in a 0-0 tie but Mercer wanted the win this time around.
The Bears came out of the gate blazing, scoring off the foot of forward Kendall Cook, assisted by Kylie Buchanan, in the ninth minute. The Bears scored again in the 47th minute thanks to midfielder Payton Schurr. ETSU tried to answer with 11 shots compared to Mercer’s 10, but the Buccaneers couldn’t find the inside of the net. The Bears took the quarterfinal match by a final score of 2-0.
After winning their first postseason game, the Bears moved on to face the No. 1 seeded Samford Bulldogs on Sunday. Both defenses managed to suppress one another though Samford took 11 shots compared to Mercer’s three. Despite the shot disparity, The Bulldogs could only score one goal in the 88th minute thanks to midfielder Zoe Perrin.
The top seed Bulldogs are moving on to face the Furman Paladins on Nov. 7, but Mercer is watching from home.
The Bears have several players in the SoCon All-Conference second team despite the loss, including Schurr, Kylie Buchanan, Ally Fordham and Ciara Whitely. The All-Freshman team also featured two Bears in Lana Whitfield and Chandler Lewis-Jenkins. All of these players are expected to return for next season.
Keith Holmes Jr. ‘22 is a journalism and creative writing double major who has worked with The Cluster as general staff since his Sophomore year. Keith has received Best in SNO awards for his sports articles along with years of work at Mercer’s ESPN3 branch. Keith spends his free time playing video games and writing fiction around campus.
