BABSON PARK, Fla. (October 18, 2017) – The Webber International University women's soccer team is one step closer to securing a birth in the 2017 The Sun Conference Tournament as the Warriors held on in the final minute to defeat the Sand Sharks of the University of South Carolina Beaufort by a score of 2-1 on Wednesday afternoon at Warrior Field.

Webber was victorious for the third straight match as its record improved to 7-2 overall and 5-2 in The Sun Conference, while USCB fell to 6-7 overall and 3-5 in the conference.

The Warriors are now tied for second in the conference standings with five wins, and are two matches ahead of SCAD Savannah and USCB (three wins each; tied for seventh) in the win column with only three matches remaining on the schedule for Webber. After Wednesday's victory, the Warriors have now defeated both SCAD Savannah and USCB in back-to-back 2-1 decisions, and would own the tiebreaker over both teams.

"I am very pleased with our team's determination and willingness to learn from mistakes, bounce back from losses, and take everything one match at a time...especially throughout this intense and, at times, unpredictable conference play," said Head Women's Soccer Coach Ashley Cockrell.

Webber got the scoring started on Wednesday 18 minutes into the match after senior Laura Borders drove hard into the Sand Sharks' box and attempted to move around the goalkeeper before having the ball knocked slightly away. Fortunately for the Warriors, Madison Pike gathered the loose ball and fired it into the back of the net to make it 1-0.

Pike, a freshman from Lake Wales, Florida, has now scored seven times during her rookie campaign, and has also netted a goal in three straight matches.

The 1-0 score would remain all the way until the final minute of the second half when sophomore Francesca Mascali doubled Webber's lead with a long shot from about 40 yards out for her second goal of the season. Only 20 seconds later, however, the Sand Sharks answered with a score that would have tied things up if not for Mascali's goal moments earlier.

"I am so proud of our young and new players and the impact they have made for our program already this season," added Cockrell. "I am also proud of the versatility of our returners and how they have adapted and responded to a lot of change and growth. We will keep working and learning and see what happens. We are trying to get a positive result each game, obviously, but more so, each game gives us the opportunity to gain experience and get better as a team...and we need it."

Pike would finish the match with six total shots, five on goal, while Sydney Bailey and Luiza Oliveira each added two shots, and Marianna Scine added Webber's only other shot on goal outside of the two scores.

Sarah McKinney nearly recorded a shutout, but instead had to settle for four saves.

Next up, Webber will play in conference road matches at Saint Thomas University at 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 21, and at Thomas University at 3 p.m. on Wednesday October 25, before wrapping up the regular season at home against Keiser University on Saturday, October 28.