DELAND, FL. – Stetson women's soccer maintained its perch on the top of the ASUN league table with a dramatic 4-3 victory over Jacksonville Thursday night at the Athletic Training Center. The Hatters got the go-ahead goal with 58 seconds remaining in the match after the lead changed three times on the night.

"I thought we came out with the right mentality," head coach Chris Bergmann said "We scored a great goal, and we know JU fights hard and they certainly did coming back and putting themselves in a good position. I think at halftime we talked about getting ourselves back on track and following our game plan that we know if we execute, we'll get the result. It was great to see us coming out in the second half, scoring right away and putting us on the offensive; it really dictated the way the game was going and was a well-executed half which ultimately led to the victory. We knew there were pressing moments where we could push through and win the ball and we said we need to set the tone in the first 10 minutes to find those opportunities and as you can see she's [Chloe Washington] is excellent at it."

The Hatters were aggressive from the opening whistle with junior forward Chloe Washington charging off the midfield stripe and pressed and created a chance, and then a corner immediately after.

At the 10:36 mark, Peyton Massie picked up a foul and earned a free kick along the left sideline for the . After the Hatters set up for the free kick, sophomore defender Kyleigh Thelen smashed a cross toward the far post from the free kick and Massie got a head to it and all the Dolphins could do was watch it go in, 1-nil lead for the home team.

"The main thing that made tonight special is we all wanted it," freshman midfielder Hanna Arvay said "We went to the field and fought hard at 100 percent. We wanted to win every battle tonight playing to the last minute. Soccer is always a team effort, and today everyone put in their 100 percent."

The Dolphins stayed competitive the entire night and took the lead, 2-1, to end the first half after drawing then converting a penalty kick and scoring a goal from
open play.

"Tonight was about hard work and competing," senior defender Sydney McKee said "We got scored on and we usually have a tough time coming back but we came together collectively and put away our set pieces. Hanna [Arvay] stepped up, Peyton {Massie] stepped up and our midfield did a good job of marking their 4-4-2 [formation]. I also think it was really good to win our outside battles, they're a fast team and we were able to keep up."

Stetson immediately answered in the second half with a brace from Arvay in the first four and a half minutes. Fifty-one seconds into the half, Arvay finished a set piece, redirecting Thelen's free kick that was touched by Massie and made it through the goal box to an unmarked Arvay. Then minutes later, Arvay unleashed a shot that floated off the far post and in as a scrambling goal keeper, Gretchen Duttenhofer, was unable to catch up to the arcing shot. Stetson took a 3-2 advantage in the 49th minute.

"The halftime talk went well and we scored two goals in five minutes," McKee said about the team's bounce back. "We struggle with keeping strong going into our second half, so that was really good and set the tone going forward."

Five minutes later, JU tied the match at 3-3. Bella Faherty sent a shot that sneaked under the crossbar that was over junior goalkeeper Ashleigh Wise.
After back-and-forth pressure, Stetson's offensive pressure forced a defensive error. Sophomore forward Jillian Therrien sent in a cross, trying pick out an attacking player in the box, and a Jacksonville defender attempted to clear the ball sent it into her own net off the near post for the go-ahead goal with 68 seconds left in the match. JU was unable to mount a response as the Hatters blasted the ball to the final third, seeing the game out.

"We saw an opportunity in the last five minutes," Bergmann said of the late pressure forcing an own goal from JU. "It looked like they were settling into a good defensive stance and we were just kicking it long. We told our ladies, just play our way: move the ball, find those quick counter-attacking opportunities and we're going to find an opportunity to win it.

Some notable achievements from the result and match itself is Stetson is undefeated in league play through three games for the first since the 2017. The last time SU scored four in a conference game was against NJIT in a 4-2 victory on October 7, 2018. Arvay becomes the first Hatter to score a brace in league play since Washington did it last season against Jacksonville on October 17, 2021.

Stetson women's soccer will stay in DeLand to play North Florida Sunday night at the Athletic Training Center with kickoff scheduled for 6 p.m. The match will be live streamed on Hattervision Youtube.

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS. Get in on the conversation on social media by following Stetson Athletics on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For video content, visit our YouTube channels: Stetson Hatters, Stetson Athletics and, for live events, Hatter Vision.