SPARTANBURG, S.C. – One week ago, Longwood women's soccer turned a corner. Saturday against USC Upstate, Emilie Kupsov took the wheel.
 
The junior forward and reigning All-Big South first-teamer drove the Lancers (5-5-3, 3-1-2 Big South) to their third straight win with her first career hat trick, scoring all three goals to lift Longwood past USC Upstate 3-0 Saturday afternoon at County University Stadium.
 
Kupsov, who has now scored in three consecutive games, scored twice in the first half Saturday and then locked up the hat trick with just 37 seconds to play to become the first Lancer to score three goals in a game since four-time All-Big South selection Amanda Spencer did it in a 4-3 win against Elon on Sept. 13, 2013. Two of Kupsov's goals Saturday were unassisted, while another came on an assist from Emily Mothersbaugh, as the Lancers picked up their third straight multi-goal win of the year.
 
"That was a solid road performance and result," said Longwood head coach Todd Dyer. "Obviously, Kup [Emilie Kupsov] will be the headliner with her hat trick, but our team put in the effort on both sides of the ball. Our soccer led to three goals, and our combativeness and our organization in defense preserved the shutout. Now it's time to recover and focus on Wednesday."
 
Saturday's rout over third-place USC Upstate (7-6-0, 3-3-0 Big South) is the latest in a string of statement wins from the Lancers, who have outscored opponents 10-1 over the past three games to move into a tie for second place in the Big South standings.
 
"We came into this game knowing it was going to be a fight," said Kupsov, whose seven goals this season already match her team-leading seven from her breakout sophomore campaign in 2017.
 
"USC Upstate is a very good team coming off three straight wins, but we continue to show our character and grit through 90 minutes."
 
The Spartans entered the game as the Big South leader with 26 goals, but the Lancers stifled that attack and allowed just three shots on goal to secure their third shutout of the year. Sophomore goalkeeper Madison Van Dyke earned the clean sheet with three saves, bumping her into a tie for first place in the Big South with three shutouts on the year, while the defensive trio of Sydney Wallace, Amber Hodges and Kathryn Miller held USC Upstate to a season-low seven shots.
 
Now 3-1-2 in conference play, Longwood trails first-place Radford (4-1) and is tied with Campbell (3-1-1), USC Upstate (3-3) and Winthrop (3-3) for the second most wins in the conference. Longwood and Radford now own the longest active winning streaks in the conference at three games apiece.
 
"As for these last three games, I think we have finally found our rhythm at the right time," Kupsov said. "We're working together and for each other, and I'm so proud of the continuous work each and every one of us continues to show."
 
The preseason No. 2 Lancers will get their next shot at closing the gap with Radford this Wednesday, Oct. 10, when they take on Campbell in Buies Creek, N.C. That will be the first in a four-game stretch to close out the regular season which follows with back-to-back home matchups against Gardner-Webb and Winthrop on Oct. 13 and 20 and concludes with a trip to reigning league champion High Point on Oct. 23.
 
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