South Georgia Tormenta FC's W League team triumphed over the Fayetteville Fury in the season opener on May 15 with a 0-5 score at Bill Yeager Stadium.
After an evening of weather delays, the match opened with a fierce start as each team vied to find possession. South Georgia found the first scoring opportunity early in the match, but the attempt was blocked by Fayetteville’s keeper.
Just moments later in the 20th minute, Momo Nakao sent a shot blasting past Fayetteville’s keeper into the back of the net. This first-of-the-season goal was assisted by Jhenesis Ellerbe.
After the first goal was slotted, Tormenta remained focused on breaking through Fayetteville’s defense to find a second goal, making several shots on goal. The second goal came in the 42nd minute of play when Elis Nemtsov found a loose ball inside the box and shot it past the keeper.
South Georgia’s back line remained strong throughout the duration of the match, making key plays and passes to thwart advances made by Fayetteville.
Early in the second half, Carlyn Presley netted the third goal of the match, slotting in a close-range shot from inside the box. This third goal only drove South Georgia to press on and find a fourth goal before the final whistle.
Keeper Jenna Moran made several key plays throughout the match, skilfully keeping any goal-scoring attempts at bay.
The fourth goal came in the 65th minute when Melanie Mckoy, assisted by Nakao, sent a header into the net following a corner kick.
South Georgia made several changes in the second half, bringing on Alice Bussey, Tal Faingezicht, Farah El Tayar, Dara Russo, and Roisin McGovern. These fresh faces brought along more opportunities to find a late-in-the-game goal to bolster the intimidating lead already facing Fayetteville.
Following these substitutions, a Fayetteville defender fouled a South Georgia player inside the penalty area in the 75th minute, and a referee awarded Tormenta a penalty kick. Bussey converted the penalty kick, slotting the ball to the bottom right corner of the net narrowly past Fayetteville’s keeper.
This statement win leads South Georgia to its next W League match against NC Courage’s U23 team at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, May 19.
