Three early goals carry Liberty to 3-1 win
Greenville, SC (June 3, 2022) – A rainy Greenville afternoon turned into a fruitful first half for the Liberty, as the club scored three unanswered goals in the first 35 minutes of play on the way to a convincing 3-1 win over rival Asheville City SC. Carly Thatcher, Caroline Conti and Caitlyn Reilly all found the back of the net as they handed Asheville its first loss of the season. With the win, Greenville moved to 4-0-1 on the season. Friday night’s match was presented by Holmes Underground Inc.!
Greenville stalked the opposing net immediately after the opening whistle. Just three minutes into the match, Carly Thatcher snuck a shot in the bottom right corner past Asheville goalkeeper, Emory Wegener, to give Greenville an early 1-0 lead. Still holding in Asheville’s defensive third, a dangerous tackle to Caitlyn Reilly minutes later gave Greenville a free kick outside the 18-yard box. The Liberty’s leading scorer, Caroline Conti, stepped up to ping a second Greenville goal past the Asheville defense. Ten minutes before the break, Caitlyn Reilly capitalized off a Greenville corner, heading in a third goal for the home side. Resolute in their offensive position, the Liberty continued to dominate the rest of the half and took a 3-0 lead at the break.
Both teams stepped back to the pitch for the final 45 minutes, as a set of Greenville subs brought fresh legs to a home side set to play three matches across the next eight days. The Liberty maintained possession for the majority of the second half, testing Wegener again and again. After 83 minutes of play, Asheville found the net, finally putting a point on the board. The strike proved to be the lone bright spot for the visitors, though. The final whistle blew, and Greenville claimed its’ next victim with a 3-1 win, extending its unbeaten streak to 4-0-1.
The Greenville Liberty will play again on Tuesday, June 7th at 7:00pm in Triumph Stadium when they welcome the NC Fusion to town. Tickets are on sale now.