CHARLOTTE, N.C. –The third-seeded Queens University of Charlotte women's soccer team (16-4-1) is scheduled to play seventh-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne University (11-5-3) on Sunday, Nov. 21 in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship after defeating North Georgia in the opening round by a score of 2-1 on Friday.
This is the third meeting this season between the Royals and the Bears who split matches this year. The overall series is in Lenoir-Rhyne's favor at 11-8-2. In their last meeting, Queens defeated Lenoir-Rhyne in double overtime in the semifinal round of the South Atlantic Conference Championship. Junior forward
Nia Gaither scored the golden goal in the final minute of overtime action.
Following the Royals' 2-1 opening round win over sixth-seeded North Georgia, Lenoir-Rhyne downed second-seeded and 10
th-ranked Catawba College. After both teams played to a draw through both overtime periods, the Bears came out on top, 3-1, in PKs.
Queens is led by
Mia Manuel's 12 points on the season on six goals.
Alyssa Edwards and Gaither each have 11 points to follow. Edwards has four goals and three assists while Gaither has five goals and one assist. Edwards leads the Royals with four game-winning goals and Gaither has three following Friday's win.
In goal,
Erica Turner has 13 shutouts on the year for Queens to rank third nationally.
Leonie Proessl leads the Bears in goals this season with 11. Her 23 points rank second for the Bears who are led by Ria Acton's 24 points on nine goals and six assists. Evan O'Leary has 22 points on eight goals and six assists.
This will be the Royals' second time making an appearance in the second round of the Championships. A win would advance Queens to the Southeast Region Final for the first time in program history.
Sunday's match is set to begin at 2 p.m. at Frock Field located on the campus of Catawba.
Be sure to follow the Royals on Instagram and Twitter @quwsoc for the latest news and updates surrounding the program. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @QueensAthletics.
