Radford Clinches Share of Women's Soccer Regular-Season Title
By Radford Athletics
RADFORD, Va. – In what became a perfect Senior Day, the Radford women's soccer team clinched at least a share of the Big South regular season crown and the top seed in the upcoming Big South Tournament with a 2-0 win over Charleston Southern on Saturday afternoon.
KEY STATS
- Lilly Short netted her team-leading eighth goal in the first half.
- Paige Olson rebounded a penalty kick save for her fifth goal of the campaign.
- Radford out shot the Buccaneers 12-4 (4-2 on goal) in the match.
- The win gives Radford at least a share of the Big South regular season crown, their first conference championship since 2023.
PLAY BY PLAY
After the group of seniors were recognized pregame, the team leaders wasted no time getting after Charleston Southern. The Highlanders put up five shots before getting their first great chance on a free kick in the attacking half. Jillian Silverstone's ball from around 30 yards out found the head of fellow senior Short, who connected and found the game-winning goal in the 26th minute.
Physical play dominated the opening of the second half, with Olson being shown a caution in the 56th minute. Olson would get the last laugh, as she was taken down in the box by a Buccaneer defender three short minutes later. Olson's try from the penalty spot was initially saved, but her rebound got past the exasperated goalkeeper for Radford's second score.
Charleston Southern desperately tried to avoid the shutout, but Lexi Radvanyi stood firm in the net. She made a diving save with just under 20 minutes left. The junior handled a late scramble in the box in the waning seconds for her fourth clean sheet of conference play.
SOHRABI QUOTABLE
"We wanted to take care of business at home," explained Head Coach Ben Sohrabi. "The girls came out and performed extremely well. It's very difficult to win a regular season conference championship. It's a long haul. I'm just so proud of what these girls have done this season. I look forward to seeing what they can do in the tournament. I have a lot of respect for these seniors. I love them as players. They're great students. They're great people. They have given this program so much success. They've had so much dedication and commitment to everything we do. They just believe and they're winners. They've had so much success. I'm looking forward to what they do in the tournament."
UP NEXT
Radford will attempt to take the Big South regular season championship outright on Wednesday, Oct. 29 at Gardner-Webb. The match begins at 7:00 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.