DOUGLAS, Ga. -- No. 3 seed Gordon State Soccer hit the road to take on top seed South Georgia State in the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association / NJCAA Region 17 championship here Wednesday afternoon and came away with a hard-earned 2-1 victory.
The conference final served as a showdown between teams that split their season series with each team winning on the road -- SGSC with the 2-1 win at GSC on April 17 while GSC returned the favor on May 2 with a 2-0 victory.
The tense affair saw few quality chances on goal in the early minutes, but things changed quickly in the 33rd minute when the Hawks opened the scoring with a goal by Lissette Sanchez to make it 1-0 SGSC.
The Highlanders were quick to respond when less than 60 seconds later freshman Sophia Kotopka (Riverview, Fla. / East Bay HS) slipped the ball to sophomore Gabriella Arellano (Miami, Fla. / John A. Ferguson Sr. HS), who fired a shot that ricocheted off a Hawks defender into the goal and level the score at 1-1.
Kotopka and Arellano played the roles of the dynamic duo just before halftime in the 44th minute as they teamed up again for what proved to ultimately be the game-winning goal.
Becca Doyle (Acworth, Ga. / Harrison HS) was solid in goal for GSC (8-3-0) and worked well with her defense to shut out SGSC for the final 45 minutes as the Highlanders clinched their third consecutive GCAA championship.
SGSC's season concludes at 7-3-1.
GSC will represent NJCAA Region 17 when the Highlanders host the Region 8 champions, Eastern Florida State College, Saturday May 22 at 11 a.m. ET in the NJCAA South Atlantic District Final.
EFSC comes into Saturday's match with a record of 8-0-1.
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The Gordon State College Department of Athletics is a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA). Gordon State College competes in NJCAA Division I in the sports of Women's Soccer (Fall), Men's Basketball (Fall/Spring), Softball (Spring) and Baseball (Spring). Gordon State College is located in Barnesville, Ga., approximately 60 miles south of Atlanta and 35 miles northwest of Macon. Gordon State College offers both two-year and four-year degree programs and believes that our Athletics program provides student-athletes with the opportunity to be successful academically, athletically and in life after their time as a Highlander. Follow GSC Athletics at www.gscathletics.com, on Facebook (@Gordon State Highlanders) and Twitter (@state_ad / GordonStateAD). You can also follow Gordon State College on Facebook (@GordonStateCollege #GSCHighlandersForward), Twitter (@GordonState) and Instagram (gordon_state).