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No. 12 Golden Eagles Down Villanova 1-0; Stamps Ticket to BIG EAST Tournament Semis
Nov. 1, 2009
MILWAUKEE - Box Score (PDF) Game Photo Gallery | Championship Trophy Presentation Photo Gallery The No. 12 Marquette women's soccer team earned a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament Semifinals for the fourth time in program history thanks to a 1-0 victory over Villanova Sunday afternoon at Valley Fields. Junior Lauren Thut scored the Golden Eagles' lone goal in the 37th minute. The win is the fifth straight for the Golden Eagles who improve to 14-4-2 overall on the season, while the Wildcats close out their season 11-5-5 overall. Marquette will play No. 3 American Division seed West Virginia Friday, Nov. 6 at 5 p.m. EST/4 p.m. CST at Morrone Stadium on the campus of the University of Connecticut. The game will be broadcast live on CBS College Sports with Ann Schatz and Tammy Blackburn on the call. Reigning BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week Natalie Kulla earned her 14th shutout of the season, while the Golden Eagles held Villanova to eight shots. Sophomore Rachael Sloan, the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week, led MU's attack registering six of the team's 18 total shots.
Marquette had the first quality scoring opportunity of the game in the 27th minute as senior Becky Ryan headed forward a punt from sophomore goalkeeper Natalie Kulla and deflected the ball of the head of a Wildcat defender as sophomore Rachael Sloan ran onto the ball in the box. Sloan rocketed a shot from 12 yards out which sailed just over the crossbar.
At the 36:51 mark, Thut lined up to take Marquette's only corner kick of the first half, and hit the inside of the far post with her serve which deflected into goal for her second goal of the season. Marquette's stifling defense held the Wildcats to just four shots in the first half, none of which were on frame. The Golden Eagles forced Villanova goalkeeper Molly Williams to make two saves in the first half on shots on goal by Sloan and senior Brittany Bares. Following Thut's goal, the Golden Eagles saw more chances in the second half to cushion their lead. In the 57th minute, Ryan served the ball from the right side of the field to the far side of the post, finding the head of Sloan, who directed the ball just wide. With less than ten minutes remaining in the match, Sloan took control of a ball that squirted out of a tackle on the left side of the field and carried the ball into the box, forcing Villanova goalkeeper Williams to stifle the play 12 yards from the goal. Villanova had an opportunity to even the score when a Marquette foul gave the Wildcats a direct kick from 30 yards. Rachel Schuyler lined up to take the kick on the right side of the box, but struck it high over the crossbar. With seven minutes on the clock, senior defender Allison McBride stopped a Villanova goal to cement the victory and prevent the Wildcats from netting the equalizer. Grace Hawkins pushed the ball up the left side of the field and carried it into the box, forcing Kulla to come out of net to cut the angle. Hawkins' shot was on line to find the back of the net, but McBride cleared the ball off the goal line. Game Notes • The shutout against Villanova marked the team's 14th of the season. •With 14 shutouts this season, sophomore goalkeeper Natalie Kulla keeps increasing the single season shutout record. Kulla has played in every minute of every match this season. Kulla has 20 clean slates for her career to stand in sole possession of third play on MU's all-time shutouts list. Kulla has not allowed a goal in over 658 straight minutes, a program record for longest interval between goals allowed.
•Marquette is 4-3 all-time in the BIG EAST Tournament, 4-1 in quarterfinal action. With Notre Dame earning the No. 1 National Division seed, it will mark the first time in three tournaments that the Golden Eagles will not have to play ND in the semifinals.
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