Greenville loses penultimate match of 2023 regular season
Greenville, SC (June 28, 2023) – The Greenville Liberty Soccer Club fell 2-0 to rivals Asheville City SC on Wednesday evening at Paladin Stadium in the club’s regular season home finale, presented by Furman University Athletics. The loss gave Asheville a season sweep over the Liberty after a 2-1 Liberty loss at Asheville on June 10th.
Greenville had the upper hand in the opening thirty minutes, creating several dangerous opportunities. Molly Dwyer and Christian Brathwaite came close to giving Greenville the lead with early shots but failed to capitalize as the Liberty struggled to connect for clean looks in the final third. Asheville City quickly turned the tide with a goal less than a minute after Carly Thatcher’s effort went over the crossbar to give the visitors a 1-0 lead just after the half-hour mark.
The game continued with both teams battling for control, and in the 39th minute, Thatcher had a chance to level the score with a well-bent free kick towards the far post. Unfortunately for Greenville, the Asheville City goalkeeper made a diving save, denying them the equalizer. Just before the halftime whistle, Thatcher unleashed another shot from outside the penalty box, but her effort hit the crossbar, again denying Greenville the chance to level the match.
Asheville City came out strong after the halftime break and quickly doubled their lead. In the 47th minute, a collision between Liberty goalkeeper Grace Workman and an Asheville forward resulted in a penalty kick, which the visitors converted to extend their advantage. Despite finding themselves trailing by two goals, Greenville intensified their efforts to find a breakthrough but struggled to break in to the scoring column.
In the 71st minute, Julie Mackin came closest to scoring for Greenville. She showed great speed as she outpaced two Asheville City defenders to reach a long ball from Sarah Jacobs, creating a one-on-one opportunity with the opposing goalkeeper. However, the Asheville City shot-stopper made an incredible point-blank save, maintaining their two-goal lead and frustrating Greenville’s quest for a goal. In the end, despite Greenville’s increased intensity, the Upstate side was shut out 2-0. As the home schedule closed out, Liberty head coach reflected on the stellar fan support the team has enjoyed across its sophomore season.
“I’m very grateful for [the fans] because I know they know it’s been a tough season,” said Carlson. “it’s not a repeat season from last year and repeating success is always hard to do in any sport. But the play has been good and the fans are still coming out to support us, and I think they’re enjoying what they’re seeing.”
The Liberty will look to close out the 2023 season with a positive result when they travel to face the North Carolina Fusion on Sunday, July 2nd. Kickoff for the finale is at 6:00 PM and can be viewed on ElevenSports.com.
