Florida National, Dakota State Pick up First Postseason Victories on Opening Day of 2025 CAC Women’s Soccer Championship
It was a monumental start to the 2025 Continental Athletic Conference Women's Soccer Championship Tournament, with a pair of programs collecting their first postseason victories during Friday's first-round action at Georgia Gwinnett College's Grizzly Soccer Complex.
Florida National University, the No. 4 seed, scored three unanswered goals in the second half to defeat No. 5 seed Carolina University (North Carolina) 3-1. Then, No. 6 seed Dakota State University (South Dakota) advanced with a dramatic 3-2 penalty kick shootout victory against No. 3 seed Hesston College (Kansas), after the two teams battled to a 1-1 draw over 110 minutes.
Friday's triumphs set up semifinal round matches on Sunday, November 9, between Florida National and GGC, the No. 1 seed, at 11 a.m. and No. 2 seed Bellevue University (Nebraska) playing Dakota State at 2 p.m.
Here are recaps from Friday's first-round matches:
Match 1: Florida National University 3, Carolina University 1
Latyfath Ubeda scored a pair of second-half goals, including the match winner, as the No. 4 seed Florida National University rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat No. 5 seed Carolina University (North Carolina) 3-1 on Friday afternoon.
Trailing 1-0 after the opening 45 minutes, Ubeda squared the contest when she intercepted a pass at the top of the 18-yard box in the 52nd minute.
The Conquistadors (3-7-1) took their first lead of the match, at 2-1, two minutes later when Ubeda bent a left-footed shot into the upper right corner of the opposing goal.
Delmis Reyes Amaya provided an insurance goal in the 75th minute following a pass from Ubeda.
Carolina (4-11-3) grabbed an early 1-0 lead with an unassisted goal from Peyton Battilla in the 13th minute.
Carolina outshot Florida National by a 12-11 margin and had six corner kicks compared to the Conquistadors' three corner kicks across the 90 minutes of action.
Match 2: Dakota State University 1, Hesston College 1 (Dakota State advances 3-2 in penalty kick shootout)
In its inaugural season, No. 6 seed Dakota State University (South Dakota) picked up a postseason triumph by edging No. 3 seed Hesston College (Kansas) in a dramatic 3-2 penalty kick shootout victory, after the two teams battled to a 1-1 draw for 110 minutes.
Nichole Corona struck first for Dakota State (1-13-2) when she found the back of the net in the 24th minute of the match.
Hesston's Cecilia Solis squared the match, at 1-1, when she found the upper part of the goal in the 52nd minute for her first goal of the 2025 season. Rena Itoga set up the scoring chance for the Larks (5-8-1).
A goal was taken off due to offsides for Dakota State during the 104th minute.
Both goalkeepers shined throughout the match, with Dakota State's Sierra Verplancke making seven saves and Hesston's Asleigh Williams adding six saves across the 110 minutes of action.
In the penalty kick shootout, the Larks raced out to a 2-0 advantage after successful attempts by Rena Itoga and Emilie Romero.
Dakota State got on the scoreboard when Clarissa Knoll found the left side of the goal during the team's third attempt.
Hesston had two chances to win the shootout. However, Verplancke stood tall in front of the goal by stopping shots from Kristyn Oliver and Suleima Vazquez in the fifth and sixth rounds, respectively.
Following another missed penalty kick by Hesston, Dakota State's Kirsten Piskorski capped the extended shootout with a successful try.
Dakota State outshot Hesston by a 14-12 margin in the regulation match and two overtime sessions, and had a 4-1 advantage in corner kicks.
Friday's contest marked the first postseason match for either team.