MOUNT VERNON, Ga. - Faulkner knocked off the Barons on the road for the first time since 2019 Thursday night in a 2-0 result with a pivotal penalty save from Taylor Waters in the closing moments of the first half to preserve the lead to pick up a crucial three points on the road.

Faulkner took the lead at the half-hour mark when Yury Santaclara played a long free kick from the defensive half and found Cassie Jackson who passed to Oluwatomisin Eludipo for the Nigerian's ninth goal of the season. Jackson and Santaclara picked up their fourth assists of the year.

With less than two minutes left in the first half, Brewton-Parker was awarded a penalty and Amy Sagastume stepped up to take it for the hosts. Taylor Waters dove to her right and made the save, marking the first saved penalty by a Lady Eagle goalkeeper since Oct. 13, 2020 when Megan White saved a penalty against Martin Methodist (now UT Southern). The save preserved the halftime lead for the Lady Eagles. 

The two teams about evenly split seven shots in the second half until the 82nd minute when Santaclara floated a perfect ball for Brooke Parker to climb up to the head in the match-sealing goal.

The Lady Eagles improved to 7-6-1 overall but most importantly, picked up a critical three points in the SSAC standings over one of the teams pursuing the top eight for a spot in the conference championship tournament. Faulkner sits tied with Thomas for seventh with nine points. Brewton-Parker and ABAC could catch the duo mathematically, but Faulkner owns the head-to-head tiebreak over both.

Faulkner and Thomas battle on Saturday to try to solidify places in the SSAC Championship. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. central in Thomasville, Ga. Read Full Article