Anderson Nets Hat Trick in Radford’s 7-2 Rout of Emory & Henry

Thursday, August 27

Radford, Va.

7:00 PM

Radford University

2-2-0, 0-0-0

Emory & Henry

0-1-0, 0-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Emory & Henry	1	1	2
Radford	3	4	7

Photo by: Matthew Maldonado

Anderson Nets Hat Trick in Radford’s 7-2 Rout of Emory & Henry

8/27/2026 10:08:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

RADFORD, Va. – The Radford Highlanders women's soccer team needed a bounce-back win, and they got just that. With junior Ciaira Anderson scoring three times, the Highlanders took down Division II side Emory & Henry, 7-2, on Thursday evening at Cupp Stadium.

KEY STATS

Radford erased an early deficit, scoring three times in the first half and four more times in the second to pull away.
Ciaira Anderson scored a hat trick for the first time in her collegiate career. All four of her goals as a Highlander (1 her freshman year) have come against Emory & Henry.
Seniors Lena Borges and Haley Blake scored their first goals in their Radford careers in the first half.
Senior Ava Kertgate also added a goal and two assists.
Radford finished with 26 shots and 14 shots on goal in the big win. They also finished with seven corner kicks, four more than their opponent.
The five-goal win is Radford's largest since taking down South Carolina State 8-0 on Aug. 25, 2024.

PLAY BY PLAY
Though the final score seemed to show a total domination, the first third of the contest was far from that. Mallory Harmison took the first shot of the game in the eighth minute that missed high that was not a great look. A minute later, Emory & Henry broke through with a turnover, and Sadie Moseley made the most of her chance to find the back of the net that made it 1-0 in favor of the Wasps, just shy of 10 minutes in.

Radford turned up the pressure on the offensive end, creating several opportunities consecutively. A pair of shots, first by Hailey Crellin from distance in the 13th minute, then Anderson in the 14th minute, were put away by the Wasps defenders. A corner kick went through the goal box for Radford in the 24th minute, but nobody was able to send home Harmison's kick. Finally, Anderson created space just outside the box and bent her left-footed shot around the goalkeeper but just inside the left post to even the score at 1-1 with just under 20 minutes left before halftime.

Borges scored the go-ahead goal off Radford's sixth corner kick of the match. A great send by Kertgate found the native Parisian in the middle of the box, and Borges' boot connected to tuck the ball just inside the right post to make it 2-1 Highlanders. A bit later in the closing minutes of the first half, Kertgate was creating another opportunity. Her pass into the middle found Blake, and the senior tapped the ball across to give herself a collegiate goal and Radford a 3-1 advantage heading into the locker room.

The Highlanders wasted no time getting back to work in the second half. A cross by Harmison was nearly saved by the Wasps' goalkeeper, but a whiff allowed Anderson to tap in her second goal of the night and Radford's fourth of the game in the 50th minute. Just over a minute later, Kertgate added her first goal of the season, a shot that found its way through a couple of Emory & Henry defenders and into the bottom right corner of the goal to make it 5-1. Not long after, Anderson got a great pass from Lilly Clayton that gave the junior a one-on-one shot from near the penalty spot. She made the most of the chance, becoming the second Highlander to have a hat trick in just four games.

Emory & Henry did not quit, however, scoring once more to get the deficit down to four goals with 25 minutes left to play. Radford got one more home, as Magda Carpenter joined the goal-scoring party after a perfect pass set up by freshman Vanessa Zufall. The senior's first goal of the season made it a 7-2 game with eight minutes left, and Radford held on to take the win by a five-goal margin.

SOHRABI QUOTABLE
"I think it was kind of a crazy game to be honest," said Radford Head Coach Ben Sohrabi postgame. "They scored a goal to begin, but I liked the way we responded. It was nice to see several players score goals. It was nice to see Ciaira score a hat trick. I'm disappointed we gave up two goals tonight. At the same time, I think they are good learning experiences. It's nice to get back to 2-2. We're looking forward to getting some big wins against some tough opponents coming up on the schedule."

ANDERSON ON HAT TRICK
"I was really happy (on scoring the hat trick). Happy for me, happy for the team. Everyone was happy for each other. Once we got the momentum going in our direction, we didn't let off. Just like what Coach Sohrabi said in the locker room at half. Overall, happy that the team got it done today."

UP NEXT
After playing their final contest against a non-Division I opponent, the Highlanders hit the road for the Tar Heel State. They face UNC Greensboro on Sunday, August 30 at 6:00 p.m. from the UNCG Soccer Stadium. The contest will also stream live on ESPN+.

STAY SOCIAL WITH RADFORD WOMEN'S SOCCER
For all the latest on Radford women's soccer, be sure to follow the team on X (@RadfordWSOC), Instagram (@radfordwsoc), and "like" the team's official Facebook Page (Radford Women's Soccer).

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