Radford, Va. -- Junior Jonita Hooker (Woodbridge, Va.) and senior Nikki Porter (Maryville, Tenn.) scored two goals, 2:55 apart in the first half to give Radford (10-6-1, 5-1-1 Big South) a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over High Point (8-8, 3-4 Big South) from Patrick D. Cupp Memorial Stadium. With the goal, Porter tied Missy Gaitka fo
r second with 40 career goals and gave her 101 career points, just the third Highlander to reach the century mark.
High Point struck first in the 14th minute as Jen Evan fired it into in the back of the net from 15 yards out to give the Panthers an early 1-0 advantage. The play was set up as Amy Anzovino pushed the ball back to Carolyn Bader who touched it over to Evans for the one-timer that beat sophomore Tara Oleartchick (Woodbridge, Va.) to the left.
Later in the half, the Highlanders took the lead on a pair of goals. They tied the match at 21:06 on Hooker’s 10th goal of the season. A failed clearing attempt in the box went right to Hooker and she put it into a wide open net from 10 yards. Porter put RU ahead in the 25th minute, splitting two Panther defenders and beating HPU keeper Courtney Noel to the right. The play was set up on a 25-yard through ball by senior Debbie Leach (Olney, Md.).
Both teams had a few chances in the second half but a couple of key defensive plays kept either team from scoring the rest of the match. The Panthers had two chances on a corner kick in the 72nd minute, but the near post defender stopped the initial header by Wendy Williams and the rebound shot by Tanya Wolf was saved by Oleartchick. Oleartchick finished with four saves.
High Point had o
ne more great chance in the 83rd minute as Evans sent a low cross to the far post, but Emily Lanham chipped it over the wide open goal. Radford countered and senior Erin Crane (Midlothian, Va.) fired from about 20 yards, but Noel made an outstanding leaping save. Noel made six saves on the night.
The Panthers out shot Radford, 14-12 with the Highlanders holding a 3-2 corner kick advantage. Radford has now won five of the last seven matches by the score of 2-1. The other two scores were a 2-2 tie and a 1-0 win by High Point.
Both Radford and High Point conclude their regular seasons at home this weekend. The Highlanders face Liberty on Friday and the Panthers host Coastal Carolina on Saturday. Both matches are at 7 p.m.
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