Box Score Demorest, GA - The Piedmont College women's soccer team fell 4-2 earlier tonight to the visiting Vikings of Berry College (9-2) picking up their first loss in the friendly confines of Walker Athletic Complex so far this season with the two-goal defeat. PC (7-4-1) allowed three first half scores for the just the third time in the last five seasons giving up a trio of 1st-half scores to the Vikings tonight including one with just over two minutes remaining before halftime in the loss.
Berry scored first in the contest getting a score in the 23rd minute off a deflected cross as Celia Dann slid to tap away the Vikings' opening goal. The Vikings got their second in the 41st minute as the two teams would combine for a flurry of goals just before the half.
After the visitors scored to go up 2-nil, Piedmont's
Megan Hatfield would run down a chance and slide to score her first goal of the season while helping Piedmont to become the first team ranked outside the national top five to score on the Berry back four this season. Prior to tonight, all eight of the Vikings' wins on the season had come in shutout fashion as Berry had only allowed scores to #5 Emory and #3 Trinity in 2014.
Despite Hatfield's goal in the 42 minute, the Lady Lions would give up a goal just over a minute later when Chandler Maddox struck a ball from distance that deceived Piedmont keeper
Michaela Gardner and put the Vikings up 3-1 at the half.
Shortly after the intermission, Hatfield would convert a penalty to again bring the Lady Lions within a goal. However, Berry's Maggie Midkiff, who caused havoc all night long on the Piedmont defense, picked up her second goal of the game just 13 minutes after Hatfield's score as Midkiff slipped past the Lady Lions defense and roofed her breakaway chance to put the finishing touches on a 4-2 win for Berry.
Hatfield's two scores, which were the first of the season for the sophomore, came on just three shots for the youngster as she was one of two Lady Lions to tally multiple chances on the evening. For Piedmont who moves to 7-4-1 overall with the loss, the night marks the first time this season that Piedmont has been defeated when scoring a goal. All three of Piedmont's losses prior to tonight came in shutout fashion for the opponent.
Piedmont will jump back into league play after a two-game stint outside of the USA South schedule when they travel to play North Carolina Wesleyan College this Friday afternoon. Kickoff in Rocky Mount is set for 4:00 pm and pits a pair of teams against each other that are separated by just three points in the conference standings.
