DUE WEST, S.C. – The Erskine College women's soccer team (1-0) defeated Allen University (0-2) by a score of 1-0 at Huggins Field on Wednesday afternoon in the Fleet's season opener. 

Jordan Schuhlein's 61st-minute strike proved to be the difference as the Fleet were stout defensively all afternoon. Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Valentina Santana was only forced into a pair of saves, but made a crucial stop in the 87th minute to preserve the victory.

THE ESSENTIALS 
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HOW IT HAPPENED
As the Fleet ushered in a new era under first-year head coach Lucy Hutto, Erskine took on in-state opposition, Allen, to begin the season. The first half was a very tight affair with Erskine holding most of the possession, but neither side able to create many clear-cut opportunities. Freshman forward Selma McMurry tallied a couple of shots on target, including a flicked header to the far post off a corner that was cleared off the line by a Yellow Jackets defender. The early stages of the second half followed a similar trend, until around the hour mark. With the Fleet building possession into the Allen half, junior defender Ara Acha cut in field off her right side and lofted a ball in behind the Allen defense, where sophomore forward Jordan Schuhlein raced onto the other end and calmly slotted her shot in the far corner to fire the Fleet in front. Erskine had a few opportunities to double its lead and defended very well after its goal until the closing stages. In the 87th minute, the Yellow Jackets broke beyond the Fleet back line and created a 1-on-1 with goalkeeper Valentina Santana. But, the redshirt freshman, making her first collegiate start, held firm and came up with a clutch save to preserve the Fleet's lead. That was the closest Allen came to equalizing as Erskine saw out the final seconds and earned a 1-0 win to open the year.

THE PLAYER
Sophomore Jordan Schuhlein picked up right where she left off down the stretch of last season, with her 61st-minute goal proving to be the difference. The forward opened her account for the year in the Fleet's season opener and brought her career total to five goals. 

THE TEAM
Erskine outshot Allen 7 to 4 and held a 5 to 2 advantage in shots on target.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Erskine is back at home this weekend for its conference opener, taking on the University of Mount Olive (0-0-1) on Saturday at 1 p.m. This will be the first meeting between the teams since September 2022 and the first matchup in Due West since the 2019 season.

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