BUCKHANNON —The West Virginia Wesleyan Bobcat women’s soccer team dropped a tightly contested 2–1 decision to Mountain East Conference foe Concord University on Sunday afternoon at Culpepper Stadium
The Mountain Lions struck first in the 7th minute when Stephanie Tovar found the back of the net to put Concord ahead 1–0. Wesleyan responded quickly, however, as Paloma Zamora capitalized in the 12th minute to equalize the match at 1–1.
Concord regained the lead in the 25th minute when Katie Garratt converted her only shot on goal to make it 2–1 — a scoreline that would hold the rest of the afternoon.
The Lady Bobcats battled through a physical second half that saw 16 combined fouls and two yellow cards against Wesleyan’s Isabella Mazza and Kierra Hoiler. Both sides were disciplined defensively, with limited attacking chances.
Goalkeeper Maite Coutinho turned in another steady performance between the posts, logging four saves on ten Concord shots while facing constant pressure from the midfield pairing of Garratt and Tovar.
Wesleyan’s back line, anchored by Natalie Carlock, Hoiler, and Carlie Ice, kept Concord off the board in the second frame, allowing the Lady Bobcats to stay within striking distance until the final whistle.
Wesleyan tallied four total shots — three on target — with Zamora, Sydne Alexander, and Kailey Garofalo each testing the Concord goalkeeper. Maddie Loughborough earned the win in goal for the Mountain Lions, finishing with two saves.
Wesleyan ends its regular season campaign against Davis & Elkins College at Culpepper Stadium on Wednesday, Nov. 5 at 7:30 p.m. The outcome of the match will be important in determining if the Bobcats’ make the MEC conference tournament.
