PEMBROKE, N.C. – Taking on one of the best teams in the region on their home field in inhospitable weather, Clayton State (8-6-2, 5-5-1 PBC) battled to and through overtime before dominating a penalty kick shootout by a 4-1 margin to upset No. 3 Seed UNC Pembroke (14-4-1, 8-3-0 PBC) in a Peach Belt Conference Quarterfinal and NCAA Division II women's soccer game on Tuesday, November 12. Officially, it goes as a 1-1 tie for both teams.
 
Despite it being a defensive battle from the very beginning, both teams would see a number of quality offensive opportunities but would only be able to capitalize on one apiece. The first of those would come in the waning moments of the first half as the Braves pushed the ball into the offensive end – barely. Not too far past midfield Paula Valbuena would wind up from 43 yards out and connect just inside the far post to make it 1-0 at the 42:34 mark.
 
While they would hold that lead into the second half it would not last. In the 54^th minute one of the Laker's key offensive weapons would come through as she had so many times before. Senior midfielder Manoly Baquerizo (Guayaquil, Ecuador), staring down the end of her collegiate career, drove down field and beat one of the best keepers in the league to knot it up at 1-1 with 53:18 gone by.
 
The teams would continue to make deep runs into their respective offensive ends as Clayton State registered five shots and UNCP three before heading to overtime. That extra session would pass fairly uneventfully, outside of yellow cards for each team, as neither club recorded a shot. The final 10 minute stanza would be much the same as sophomore forward Isabel Massa (Caracas, Venezuela) put up the lone shot as the teams headed to a penalty kick shootout.
 
Faced with five rounds of just the keeper and an attacker, mano-a-mano, the playing field tends to get leveled, even against one of the best keepers in the conference in the Braves' Gina Ryan. The Lakers would go first and they would lead with one of their best in senior defender Janne Brouer (Aarhus, Denmark), who would drive her shot home for a 1-0 lead.
 
Valbuena matched that in the bottom half of the round to even it up for UNCP but senior midfielder Jane McKevitt (Thurles, Ireland) answered the bell as she came through to make it 2-1. Nona Borden would not be so fortunate as her attempt went too far to the left to maintain the one goal margin.
 
Next up for the Lakers would be sophomore midfielder Marie Devillers (Toulouse, France) and she would go top shelf as the ball deflected in off of Ryan's hands for a commanding 3-1 lead. The bottom of the frame would be no kinder to UNC Pembroke as Katy Ryan's shot was covered up by junior goalkeeper Valentina Bonaiuto (Valencia, Venezuela) on the right side of the goal.
 
Now positioned where a score would end any hope for the Braves and send Clayton State to the PBC Semifinals for the first time since 2014, it would come down to junior midfielder Ann-Cathrin Zabel (Schwarme, Germany). She would not disappoint as she made it an unbelievable 4-of-4 against Ryan, beating her to the left side to ignite a celebration that even the 34-degree temperatures couldn't dampen.
 
Valbuena would deliver the lone score for UNC Pembroke and match Rilee Seering for the lead in shots with three, although the latter put two of hers on frame. The former would also have the Braves only PK score as well. Ryan played all 110 minutes, making four saves and allowing just the one goal before allowing four straight goals in the shootout. She falls to 14-4-1 on the year.
 
Baquerizo delivered her team leading eighth score of the year and joined Massa and Devillers with three shots apiece, accounting for the majority of the team's 12 shots. Brouer, McKevitt, Devillers and Zabel all came through with their PKs.
 
The other half of that effort came from Bonaiuto, who went the distance and made three saves against one goal in game action before stonewalling two of the three penalty kicks that UNCP got to take. She moves to 8-5-2 on the season.
 
It is the first time making a trip to Augusta, Georgia for an appearance in the PBC Semifinals since the 2014 team did so. That year the club defeated Armstrong State by a 2-1 score in the quarterfinals before falling to No. 16 North Georgia.
 
In a bit of deja-vu, the Lakers return trip to the semifinals will also see them take on a ranked UNG team, this time No. 18. That game will take place at Blanchard Woods Park at 2 p.m. on Friday, November 15. The winner will advance to the 2019 Peach Belt Conference Championship at 12 p.m. on Sunday, November 17 with an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament up for grabs.
 
NOTES
While technically a tie, the 1-1 deadlock snapped a six game losing streak to UNCP dating back to September 26, 2015 … it is the first win in Pembroke since a 3-0 decision on September 27, 2014 … combined with the men's 2-1 overtime victory over Flagler earlier today, this marks the first time since the 2014 season that both teams have reached the semifinals in the same year.