ROME, Ga. — The Berry College women's soccer team battled in a tightly contested match on Saturday morning but fell 1-0 to Rhodes College at home.
The Vikings' (7-3-3, 1-1-3 SAA) defense, anchored by goalkeeper
Kate Hill, kept Berry in contention throughout the 90 minutes. Hill recorded an impressive 10 saves against a persistent Rhodes (10-1-2, 3-0-1 SAA) offense that tallied 20 total shots.
Berry generated early momentum in the first half as
Gianna Maimone fired a shot toward the bottom right corner just four minutes in, forcing an early save by Rhodes keeper Olivia Barfield. The Vikings continued to press as
Mia Ries sent another attempt just wide in the 11th minute.
Rhodes countered with sustained pressure midway through the half, earning four corner kicks in a 10-minute span. Hill stood tall in goal, collecting multiple saves, including key stops against Annie Cimino and Grace Culver, to keep the match scoreless at halftime. Berry and Rhodes went into the break even at 0-0, with the Vikings facing eight shots and posting four of their own.
In the second half, the Lynx continued to test Berry's back line. Hill made several critical saves, including back-to-back stops in the 57th and 59th minutes, but Rhodes finally broke through in the 63rd minute when Sophia Rall found the back of the net off an assist from Reese Owens, giving the visitors a 1-0 lead.
Berry had an opportunity to equalize in the 83rd minute after earning a penalty kick, but Barfield denied
Peyton Goolsby's attempt to preserve the shutout. The Vikings continued to press in the final minutes, with
Giselle Aitken and Maimone both testing the Rhodes keeper, but could not find the equalizer.
Despite the loss, Berry showed strong composure on both ends of the field, highlighted by a collective defensive effort and balanced play from the midfield.
The Vikings return to action next weekend at Centre College, looking to bounce back in conference play.
