Koalas confirm sixth place AAC finish despite road loss

The Columbia College Koalas confirmed a sixth place regular season finish in the AAC, their highest in five years, despite a 1-0 loss on the road at the Tennessee Wesleyan Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon in Athens, TN.

Coming into the game, the Koalas knew they still had the chance to advance further up the table with a result against a stout Bulldogs side. A stuttery first half ended with neither team having found the back of the net with the Bulldogs outshooting the Koalas 6-2 in the first period.

Unfortunately for Columbia, Tennessee Wesleyan found the go ahead goal less than three minutes after the break, as the AAC's second leading scorer was able to nab a header to make it 1-0 to the Bulldogs.

Columbia had a tremendous defensive effort to thank as they repelled numerous attacks in the second half, with goalkeeper Amorie Kostelak showing safe hands and Sammie McDaniel, Kianna Dodge, Kylie Stewart, and Jayla Pugh playing particular well in the defensive unit.

The Koalas generated a couple of good opportunities going forward, but their final ball just never found the correct target and the Bulldogs were able to make the early second half goal hold up as the winner.

With the result, the Bulldogs and Koalas will repeat the exact same game next weekend, with both teams receiving byes into the quarter finals and the 3v6 matchup on Saturday, November 5th at Tennessee Wesleyan. Game time TBD.