UNC Wilmington coach Paul Cairney told Serenity Waters he did not want her taking long shots, but Cairney ended up being happy she did not take his advice.

Two and a half minutes into overtime, Waters sent a shot off her right foot that curled away from Elon goalkeeper Katelyn Fowler. It found the back of the net, Waters’s second goal of the day, and not only secured a 2-1 Senior Day win for the Seahawks, but also ensured their first game in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament would be played on home turf.

“I’m at a loss for words,” Waters said. “We hadn’t come back in a game where we were down 1-0 [at halftime], so to come back, fight as a team, and not let them get one shot off in the second half means we won as a team.”

Despite the happy ending, the start of Sunday’s CAA match-up with the Phoenix was not what UNCW (10-5-3, 4-3-2) wanted.

Elon junior Kendall Ballotti took advantage of a well placed corner kick from Bria Bass, finding the back of the net on a header less than five minutes into the contest.

Elon (7-9-3, 2-5-2) would hold the lead for more than 70 minutes before Waters saved the day for the Seahawks in the 76^th minute. The junior forward scored on a deflection after the ball escaped the grasp of Elon goalkeeper Katelyn Fowler, sending UNCW Soccer Stadium in a frenzy.

“This league, this year, has been unbelievably tight,” Cairney said. “Every single team could have made the tournament today … It shows you the parity.”

The Seahawks finished the game with a 12-2 shot advantage thanks in part to Cairney challenging his team at halftime.

“They absolutely dominated us in the first half today,” he said. “I had to go at our team … I didn’t want it to end for them.”

A win or tie would have put UNCW into the conference tournament, but the Seahawks were not willing to settle for a draw.

Waters scored her eighth and ninth goals of the season in the game’s final 20 minutes of play, totaling three in the final weekend of the regular season and solidifying herself as the Seahawks’ number-one option on offense.

She said the team believed it could win its final two games to push the season farther.

“I think we did it more for our seniors because we didn’t want this to be their last game,” she said. “I think winning Friday put us back up, but this game was a must win.”

UNCW’s CAA quarterfinal game will take place next Sunday, Oct. 30.