Mary Baldwin senior winger Shea Rider scored the tying goal, then assisted on the game-winner late in the contest to lift the Fighting Squirrels to a 2-1 USA South Conference women's soccer victory over North Carolina Wesleyan on Senior Day at SMA Worth Field.

The win, after honoring Rider and classmates Kate Thoele, Sydney Kirkpatrick, Kiley Marston and Josseline Bonilla, clinched seventh place in the regular-season standings and the program's third-straight USA South playoff bid.  MBU will travel to play at second-place Methodist University Tuesday (10/31) at 3 p.m. in the quarterfinal round of the conference playoffs. 

The winner of the Mary Baldwin at Methodist game will play either third-seeded Brevard or sixth-seeded Meredith in Thursday's (11/2) conference semifinal round.  The championship game is set for Saturday, Nov. 4, at a site to be determined.  The higher seed hosts all games in the USA South playoffs.

NC Wesleyan opened the scoring in the 24th minute on the sixth goal of the season by Samantha Dell, and the visitors held the 1-0 advantage at the break.

Rider found the target in the 61st minute with her sixth goal of the season (19th of her career) to level the match.  She then assisted on the game-winning goal in the 85th minute by junior Sara Gruntowicz, her fourth score in 2023.