Update from the Hilton Head Paper:
GIRLS SOCCER
Hilton Head Christian 3, Hammond 2: Audrey Bensch and Nicole Sicilia staked the Eagles to a 2-0 lead, Hannah Reynolds scored the eventual game-winner in the 72nd minute and fourth-seeded Hilton Head Christian notched a SCISAA Class 3-A playoff upset despite playing the final 20 minutes a player down, following a red card for a hand ball in the box.
Bensch opened the scoring for the Eagles in the 25th minute, with Sicilia picking up the assist. Sicilia made it 2-0, converting a header on a corner kick 10 minutes later.
Caroline Besley cut Hammond's deficit in half before Reynolds restored the Eagles' two-goal advantage. Bensch notched the assist.
Emily Bakhaus got top-seeded Hammond to within one with a goal in the 76th minute, but Hilton Head Christian goalkeeper Ashley Donaldson shut the door the rest of the way. Donaldson finished with three saves, including a key stop on a penalty kick in the second half.
"It was an outstanding effort," second-year Eagles coach Ben Gerdts said. "We're happy to be in the semifinals."
Hilton Head Christian, which had 10 shots to Hammond's five, will play at Porter-Gaud at 5 p.m. Thursday in the SCISAA Class 3-A semifinals. The state championship will be at 4:30 p.m. Saturday in Columbia.
