Panthers Pounce On Opportunity, Take Down #15 Motlow State
Knoxville, TN -
A tightly contested match for 90 minutes led to an instant classic between Pellissippi State and #15, Conference leader, Motlow State.
"Today is a great day to be a panther." Coach Mariana Diaz said. "A culmination of hard work and effort put in by the girls. It's been a loaded week with the back-to-back games against tough opponents and we have shown tremendous resilience. This is big for the growth of our program and the culture we are trying to instill."
The Panthers and Bucks had fans and players on the edge of their seats for the full match, giving their all back and forth. Thanks to elite goalkeeping by Sameera Jaffery, who recorded 5 saves, including a couple of incredible ones to seal the game, the Panthers recorded their second shutout in conference play this season against a team in Motlow State averaging 3 goals/game.
Suzanne Barker, assisted by Sade Lee, scored the lone goal on the day in the 80th minute, securing yet another late-game victory for the Panthers. (Video)
Pellissippi State handed Motlow their first loss in conference play since April of 2021, and only their second loss of the year. Their only other loss on the year came at the hands of #1 ranked Iowa Western, 5-0 on September 19th. They were previously 6-0-1 in conference play, with the tie coming to second-place Columbia State 0-0 at the beginning of the month.
Coach Diaz credited Motlow for their terrific program; "Big credit to Motlow. They are a fantastic program, that leads the way in women's soccer in East Tennessee. They are a top program with great leadership."
This was the Panther's final conference matchup of the year, and currently stand in third place. Only a few conference games remain, and the most likely scenario will have the Panthers stay at third behind Columbia State and Motlow State, whom the Panthers hold a 2-2 combined record against. For a program in their first year, and a coach in her first year as well, there is much to be celebrated.
"For us, we are proud of the performance and the situations we have shown. The brand of soccer in and out of possession we are displaying is a credit to the buy-in from our players. Tremendous saves and tremendous plays made the difference today. We have put in a massive shift in the last 2 weeks. I am extremely proud of this team and the strength they have shown the entire season. We had great support the entire week from our community and we look forward to building differently."
The Panthers are scheduled to match up against Lindsey Wilson College at 12:00 EST. The match will take place at Emerald Youth Lonsdale.