Box Score BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – In its final home match of the 2012 regular season, the Samford University soccer team posted a critical 2-1 Southern Conference victory Sunday against the Elon Phoenix in a key conference tilt held at the Samford Track and Soccer Complex.
 
“We played very well against a really good Elon team,” said Samford head coach Todd Yelton. “Chris (Neal) is an exceptional coach and I respect him tremendously. I don't think you can argue that anybody does a better job than he does. He made it tough on us there in the end and we certainly have to get over that 'giving up a goal on a set-piece' mentality as we go forward. We can't continue to make those mistakes at this point in the season.”
 
With Sunday's victory, Samford (10-6-2, 7-1-2 SoCon) snapped a two-match winless streak in its all-time series against Elon (6-7-6, 4-2-4 SoCon) and reached the 10-win plateau for a fourth-consecutive season. The Bulldogs retained their second-place position in the SoCon standings and will close out their regular-season schedule Wednesday at Chattanooga.
 
Samford's goals were scored by sophomores Lindsey Hansen and Brittany Hoffman. Hansen's goal, which was tallied in the 42^nd minute of play, proved to be her third of the 2012 campaign. The Bulldogs' game-winning goal occurred in the 58^th minute and was Hoffman's team-leading fifth of the season.
 
Elon's lone score of the afternoon was tacked on at 74:36 as Shannon Foley trimmed Samford's late lead to 2-1. Foley's goal was assisted by both Angela Funari and Catherine Brinkman and was scored off a corner kick. Her second score of the year proved to be the Bulldogs' second straight goal that was allowed off a corner kick.
 
On Friday, UNCG topped Samford, 1-0, and its only goal of the match came off a corner kick.
 
Melissa Montgomery, the Bulldogs' sophomore goalkeeper and reigning SoCon Player of the Week, made a pair of key saves Sunday en route to her eighth victory of the season. Samford's talented native of Georgetown, Texas, has compiled a stellar 8-2-2 record as the starting goalkeeper this year.
 
Elon's goalkeeper Kate Murphy suffered the loss Sunday as the Phoenix's seven-match undefeated streak came to an end. Murphy allowed a pair of goals against Samford, but faced a 19-shot barrage from the Bulldogs and registered seven saves.
 
With 3:40 remaining until halftime, Samford received its first strike of the day as Lindsey Hansen found the back of the net. On her goal, which was assisted by both Hallie Georgi and Amanda Abbott, Hansen rifled home a one-touched shot from the left side of the goal. The play started as Abbott sent a forwarding pass down the right sideline to Georgi. Georgi gathered the ball in stride and outran a Phoenix defender before finding Hansen on the perfectly-placed crossing pass.
 
“Lindsey's goal was huge for us,” Yelton said. “I challenged our reserves before they came on, and they certainly responded by finding a goal for us. I'm really proud of them and I'm very happy for them.”
 
Hoffman's game-winner occurred at exactly 57:18 and was driven home off a Samford corner kick. On the score, Hoffman took a short corner from Jordan Johnson and sent a 25-foot laser into the top shelf above Murphy's outstretched arms. Johnson's assist was her third of the 2012 campaign.
 
“I thought that Brittany struck it really, really well, and she had a very good game for us today,” Yelton said. “We came very close to getting another goal, and I think that if we would have gotten it, then the match would have changed a lot at that point, but at the end of the day a win is a win.”
 
Samford outshot Elon, 19-4, on Sunday and has outshot its opponents by a total of 264-196 this season. The Bulldogs also registered six more corner kicks than the Phoenix, 7-1, while being whistled for more fouls, 8-2.
 
“I'm very pleased with where our team is at this point in the season,” said Yelton. “We have a great group of players and they are all outstanding people. Not only are they great people, but they're very good players and enjoyable to be around every day. I think we're playing really well right now and at the end of the day the one thing that we need to get better at is dealing with set-pieces. If we can do that, then I think we're sitting in a really good spot.”
 
The Samford University soccer team will next be in action Wednesday at 5 p.m. (CDT) as the Bulldogs travel to Chattanooga, Tenn., for their regular-season finale versus the Chattanooga Mocs. The matchup will be held at Finley Stadium (20,668).