Three corner kick goals helped carry the Sweet Briar soccer team to a crucial 4-2 road victory at Emory & Henry on Wednesday night.



With the victory, the Vixens (3-4 ODAC) move into seventh place in the league standings, a half-game ahead of Eastern Mennonite and Randolph-Macon. Emory & Henry (2-5) drops to 10th.

Kelsey Barta scored on the first major action of the second half, with the Wasps unable to clear her shot off the line following fellow senior Marissa McCord's corner kick.

Less than 10 minutes later, Des'rae Davis slotted in a pass from Kayla Kishbaugh off another Vixen corner kick.

Sweet Briar had led in the opening four minutes of the game. As the Vixens attacked down the left side, Kaila Beale ran onto the cross and took it off the foot of the last defender. She then curled a shot into the far upper corner to open the scoring.

Clarissa Martin tied it up in the 17th minute, hitting an outstanding volley from the top of the box that bent over SBC goalie Katie Tillson and under the bar.

Kishbaugh made it 2-1 with one of the goals of the season- ripping a shot inside the far post from just a yard or two off the endline, converting from that difficult angle after a corner kick was deflected through the box.

Emory & Henry's Blair Vaughn cut past a defender to the right side of the box, but Tillson blocked her hard shot on goal.

The Wasps were denied by the woodwork twice in the second half. Sam Sampson hit the post in the 68th minute, and Erica Merriman did the same almost exactly 10 minutes later.

After losing their starting goalkeeper to an injury, the Vixens could have lost replacement Kat Day as well. The junior midfielder/keeper was shown a yellow card for a foul just outside the area, and Brittany Shampine converted the free kick for the final 4-2 scoreline.

The Vixens put all seven of their shots on goal, and scored three times on four corners in an extremely efficient offensive performance.

Sweet Briar is 6-3 overall, one victory short of the program record for wins. The Vixens get a week off, before hosting sixth-place Roanoke next Wednesday in another big ODAC showdown.