CHARLOTTE, N.C. – In the Conference USA opener, the Old Dominion women's soccer team (1-3-1, 0-1-0 C-USA) fell to Charlotte (1-2-0, 1-0-0 C-USA) by a 3-1 score at Transamerica Field on Friday afternoon.
"To lose our first conference game is disappointing, no doubt," said ODU head coach Angie Hind. "We couldn't have started worse given the ridiculous goal we lost in the first minute. I thought we responded well and as you can see from the stats we were, for much of the game, the better team. But very simply, Charlotte took advantage of their chances today."
The 49ers struck first just 34 seconds into the match, claiming an early 1-0 lead. In the 26th minute, Charlotte extended its lead to 2-0 after a Haley Shand goal. Julia Patrum gave the 49ers a 3-0 advantage in the 37th minute off an assist from Ariana Maibodi.
Megan Watts capitalized on a penalty kick three minutes before halftime, cutting ODU's deficit to two, 3-1, in the 42nd minute.
At the half, the Monarchs held advantages for shots (9-3), as CLT's keeper was credited with four saves in the opening 45 minutes. Old Dominion also held a slight advantage for corners in the opening frame, 3-2.
In the 77th minute, Watts got another attempt at a penalty kick, this time her shot sailed just over the crossbar.
Despite outshooting CLT 8-4 in the second half, the Monarchs couldn't convert, ultimately falling by a 3-1 score on Friday afternoon the Queen City.
For the match, ODU possessed a 6-4 advantage for corner kicks.
Old Dominion will return to the pitch on Friday, March 5, when the Monarchs welcome Middle Tennessee to the ODU Soccer Complex for a 7 p.m. start, which will stream on CUSA.TV.
To accommodate Monarch fans as a result of the difficult circumstances related to the pandemic, the ODU Athletics department is pleased to offer free admission to all ODU soccer games for the 2021 season.
Monarchs Drop League Opener at Charlotte, 3-1
