MSUB Women's Soccer Recap 10/15/15

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Thursday, October 15, 2015 No. 19 Falcons edge Yellowjackets 1-0 Thursday

SPU scores four minutes into the second half and holds off MSUB as the Yellowjackets drop a tight GNAC match 1-0 at home Thursday.

BILLINGS, Mont. – Laura Moore scored four minutes into the second half and the No. 19 Seattle Pacific University Falcons held on for a 1-0 victory over host Montana State University Billings Thursday afternoon in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference women’s soccer match at Yellowjacket Field.

The Yellowjackets (5-5-2, 3-4-1 GNAC) placed four of their six shots on target, but SPU goalkeeper Molly Stinson came up with four saves as she collected the shutout. With the victory, the Falcons improved to 9-2-1 on the year overall and 5-21 in conference play.

“I am proud of the effort we put into the game today,” commented MSUB head coach Wojtek Krakowiak. “We played with a lot of passion, and the only thing missing was a goal. We will learn from this and move forward.”

MSUB earned a corner kick in the opening five minutes, creating its first good opportunity of the match. The cross into the box was a good one from Elizabeth Howard, but Stinson grabbed it out of the air to prevent a shot.

Yellowjacket keeper Chloe Hopps came off of her line 15 minutes in to snag a cross, getting her first touch of the match.

The freshman helped create MSUB’s next offensive push, as her ball played down field eventually resulted in a corner kick for the ‘Jackets. Despite three straight crosses into the box by Howard, the ‘Jackets couldn’t get a shot off as SPU’s defense held strongly.

With just under 20 minutes until the break, SPU had a quality chance on a cross into the box by Hannah Huesers.

Yellowjacket freshman Sarah Coghlan sprinted in from the right and cleared the cross out just before the Falcons’ attackers could reach it in front of goal.

Another corner kick for MSUB with 12 minutes left created the best scoring chance of the game to that point, as Dana Lubieniecki served the ball in. Howard wound up with the ball and her back to the goal, but her shot as she turned and fired missed high over the crossbar.

Making a crucial tackle inside the box, Haley Ayers prevented a close-range shot attempt by Alycia Wright with eight minutes remaining in the first.

Howard had the first shot on target of the match two minutes later, but her half-volley from 23 yards out was smothered by Stinson.

The Falcons countered with a corner kick, and on an ensuing cross attempt inside the box Hopps came off of her line and slid to grab the ball and stop the threat.

SPU came out of the halftime break with a prime scoring chance in the first two minutes, as Moore created room for herself with the ball at the top of the box. She took one touch and struck the ball well towards goal, but her right-footed shot carried just high over the bar.

The Falcons broke through two minutes later, as Mickayla Mury played a through ball into the box and found Moore on the right side. The senior met the ball with her right foot, shooting it into the back of the net from 10 yards out to make the score 1-0.

Lindsay Lucore intercepted a dangerous cross from the right side of the field 15 minutes into the half, standing as the last defender before the Falcons could reach the ball.

The ‘Jackets pushed forward late in the second half, but could not find an equalizer in their third straight defeat.

SPU held a 10-6 advantage in shots, while MSUB had a 3-2 edge in corner kicks. The match was even in terms of fouls, as MSUB had eight and SPU had seven.

Coghlan played all 90 minutes defensively for MSUB, helping limit SPU’s chances throughout the match and also recording a shot on target. Katlyn Lokay and Kari Kastelic also played 90 minutes on the match, teaming up with Coghlan in the back.

“Sarah deserves a lot of credit for being very aggressive and playing attacking soccer,” Krakowiak said. “Our captains did a great job of getting the team ready. We are looking forward to Saturday.”

THE BUZZ: The loss was the first of the year at home for MSUB…Howard was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…sophomore Jessica Spang, the team’s scoring leader with five goals on the season, had two shots and one on target in the match.

COMING UP: The ‘Jackets will host Saint Martin’s University on Saturday with a 3:30 p.m. kickoff. The match is tabbed MSUB’s annual Kicks Cancer game, as players will warm up wearing pink to support the fight against cancer. The match will be part of a doubleheader with MSUB’s men’s soccer team, which plays Concordia (Ore.) on Saturday at 1 p.m.

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