Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Forest University
South Carolina
Berry's Three Points Lead Deacs Past Gamecocks 2-0
9/18/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Sept. 18, 2011
Final Stats | Final Stats (PDF) 
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Ally Berry recorded the first multi-point game of her career, scoring the game-winning goal before setting up a score by Katie Stengel, to lead No. 13 Wake Forest to a 2-0 victory over South Carolina on Sunday at Stone Stadium in Columbia, S.C. in its final non-conference game of the year.
With the victory, the Demon Deacons improve to 8-1-0 on the season while the Gamecocks fall to 6-3-0.
Berry opened the scoring with her first goal of the season in the 42nd minute, blasting a misplayed clearance into the net from a step outside the six-yard box. She is the first Demon Deacon other than Stengel and Rachel Nuzzolese to net a game-winning goal this season.
Wake's second goal came in the 68th minute when Berry and Stengel linked up on a one-two combination that sent the sophomore forward clear of the defense, and she slid the ball into the net for the ACC-leading 11th goal of the season. Nine games into the season, she is only five goals shy of her Wake Forest single-season record of 16 that she set as a freshman last season.
The Melbourne, Fla. native could easily have scored three more goals against the Gamecocks if not for the herculean efforts of South Carolina goalkeeper Sabrina D'Angelo who made a number of magnificent saves, totaling five on the night.
Demon Deacon goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe had a strong game herself with her lone save of the night being a beauty from point-blank range to hold the Gamecocks scoreless. Less than halfway through the season, Bledsoe has already kept six clean sheets, the sixth-best single-season mark for a Wake Forest goalkeeper.
Danielle Au had the first chance of the game for South Carolina in the sixth minute, running onto a long ball behind the Deacon defense, but a charging Bledsoe forced her to rush her chip attempt and it drifted wide of the left post.
The Demon Deacons outshot South Carolina 12-6 and put seven shots on frame compared to only two for the Gamecocks.
The Deacs got their first good opportunity in the 33rd minute. Kim Marshall played a long ball to Alisha Woodson who was wide open on the left. Woodson cut a pass back to Riley Ridgik at the top of the box who fired a low shot just wide of the far post.
For the second straight game, the Deacons scored the game's opening goal just before the halftime break. Miscommunication plagued the Gamecocks in the 42nd minute as three South Carolina defenders came together on a cross from the right, heading it down but leaving nobody to clean up the rebound. Ally Berry found the ball in the middle of the box and fired a shot from eight yards past the goalkeeper to give the Deacs a 1-0 lead.
Katie Stengel almost doubled the Wake Forest advantage two minutes later, dribbling past the Gamebock defense but her shot was stopped by a charging D'Angelo.
Stengel was stopped again in the 55th minute but her shot from the penalty spot was saved again by D'Angelo. Off the ensuing corner kick, Kim Marshall put a header on frame that was just pushed over the cross bar by D'Angelo.
Scarcely a minute later it was South Carolina's turn to come close on a corner kick. Elizabeth Sinclair headed the corner on goal from point-blank range but Bledsoe was there to make the save.
Sinclair again came close to equalizing in the 64th minute when her header shot was cleared off the line by Kim Marshall.
Stengel dashed back the other way and was in on a breakaway, sidestepping D'Angelo but firing her shot just wide of the vacant net.
Stengel and Berry linked up for Wake Forest's second goal in the 68th minute. Stengel nodded a goal kick down to Berry and then took off on a run. Berry played a one-touch through ball that found Stengel behind the defense and she nudged the ball past D'Angelo and into the net.
Berry almost got her second goal of the game in the 75th minute getting set up at the top of the box by Riley Ridgik and hitting a low shot that was stopped by D'Angelo.
The Deacons continue with ACC play this week, traveling to take on ACC-rival NC State on Thursday before returning home for a 1 p.m. match against Miami on Sept. 25 at Spry Stadium.
