The Saint Louis University women’s soccer team opened Robert R.
Hermann Stadium with a 2-0 win over Southwest Missouri State.
Fans aplenty–829, in fact–saw the Billikens give full effort
for 90 minutes in a game they dominated throughout. The Bears were
not able to handle the Billiken onslaught that never ceased, down
to the last tick of the clock.
Last night was a night to celebrate, however, for the Saint
Louis University women’s soccer team. The Billikens out shot the
Southwest Missouri State Bears 25 to three, including 15 to three
in the second half. They put consistent pressure on Bear goalkeeper
Alexis Stormo throughout the contest. The Billikens had the bar in
the Bears’ zone most of the evening, earning four more corner kicks
than the Bears.
Stormo put forth a stellar performance recording 12 saves, but
unfortunately, for SMS’ sake, let in two goals.
The Bears offense could not seem to crack junior goalkeeper
Amanda Martin’s brick wall. Martin was in charge from the first
whistle, yelling out calls to a hustling defense all game, doing
her best to keep the Bear offense in check.
Included in that defense is freshman standout Shannon VanMarte,
who killed the few chances that the Bears had early on in the first
half. The best Bear chance of the night came in the 49th
minute.
The Bears had a beautiful shot on goal, and goalie Martin was
nowhere to be seen. Freshman Heather Crawford was there, however,
to clear the ball out of action and ease the tension among the
Billiken fans.
The Billikens broke the deadlock in the 56th minute of play on
Maureen Hughes’s goal. Sophomore midfielder Dee Guempel found
Hughes on the right post and Hughes was able to tap the ball past
Stormo.
“I got kind of lucky,” Hughes said; “I just hit it and it went
right in.” Guempel was also there to assist on the second goal of
the evening.
Freshman standout Cassi Winchell knotted her first goal of the
season in the 60th minute to keep the Billikens a bit of a security
blanket. Winchell was awfully bashful when discussing her first
career goal as a Billiken.
“I don’t know what to say, I was really nervous. It was a big
relief to get the first one after all the missed shots I have had,”
Winchell said. “It was exciting, my heart wouldn’t stop
racing.”
Coach Tim Champion was proud of his freshmen after the game, and
the team as a whole.
“We were happy to get a lot of chances tonight. They are a tough
team, and a rival because of the number of girls from St. Louis on
their squad,” Champion said post-game. “[Winchell] had a good game.
She turned it on and played well offensively,” Champion said of
Winchell’s first career goal.
The Billikens had a solid showing in the KUStore.com Crimson
& Blue Invitational at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex this past
weekend. That first-class effort carried over to last night’s first
home match. The Billikens had two tough opponents over the weekend
in Mississippi State, and No. 17 Kansas. The Billikens beat
Mississippi State 1-0 on Sept. 3, and lost to the Jayhawks 2-0 on
Sept. 5.
The Billikens overcame a tough Mississippi State Bulldog team on
the strength of junior midfielder Kelly Ferguson’s goal early in
the second half.
shutout of the season, recording five saves. The Billikens were
aggressive as always, and out-shot the Bulldogs 15 to six. Bulldog
goalkeeper Stephanie Dallas did her best to fend off the Billiken
attack en route to seven saves, but her efforts went for naught in
the loss.
The game against number 17 Kansas was not as fortunate, as the
Billikens again put up a lot of shots but could not find the back
of the net. Jayhawk goalie Meghan Miller played well, the week
after being named Big 12 defensive player of the week, recording
six saves. That was not the heartbreaker for the Billikens,
however; it was that four good shots found the post as opposed to
the back of the net. The Billikens fought hard again and put forth
a good effort against a very tough opponent.
On tap for the Billikens is the Toys for Tots Tournament at
Robert R. Hermann Stadium Sept. 17, and 19.
They will play Army and Mississippi respectively, and Air Force
will also be in town for the tournament.
Admission is free to everyone who brings a new, unwrapped toy to
the gate.
