WINFIELD, Kan. – It took a while for something to materialize on the offensive attack, but the Concordia University Women’s Soccer team got just enough on Saturday (Sept. 11) to emerge with a win at Southwestern College. Mikeila Martinez and Anisa Lewis were responsible for the goal scoring as the Bulldogs defeated the Moundbuilders, 2-1, in Winfield, Kan. Concordia came out on top despite posting roughly half the shots of its opponent.
Head Coach Thomas Goines’ program effectively avenged its 1-0 double overtime loss at Southwestern this past spring and shook off back-to-back defeats. The Bulldogs are 2-2 overall.
“The first half was a slow start. We’ve fallen into a pattern of that and need to work our way out of it,” Goines said. “The play was even and they hit a ball that was a beautiful shot that put us down a goal. We made a few adjustments in the second half, but we just put in a higher level of effort and play. We responded well and for the most part, dominated the second half. We forced Southwestern into a counter-attacking offense, which we were much more equipped to deal with.”
At the half, Southwestern (2-1-1) held an advantage of 7-2 in shots. Concordia then settled into the game against its foe from the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. Both teams wound up putting exactly five shots on goal, although the Moundbuilders had the overall shot advantage, 13-7. Lauren Fleischer gave Southwestern a very early lead with a highlight reel type of goal in the sixth minute.
Shortly after halftime, the tide turned. Said Goines, “We just created more chances in the second half and were far more dangerous. The first goal came over a nice sequence of passes – Marty beats the defender and hits it from about 18 yards out. Then Anisa put in a great effort on a ball in the box and we found a way to get our second goal. We had a chance at a handful of others.”
The second goal of the season for Martinez occurred in the 56th minute. Roughly seven minutes later, Lewis celebrated the first goal of her career. On the other end, the Moundbuilders failed to put a shot on frame the rest of the way.
Concordia starting keeper Kalie Ward made four saves. The back line in front of her included usual suspects such as center backs Callie McNary and Grace Soenksen and outside backs Allee Downing and Ellie Eason.
Another road challenge is coming up on Wednesday when the Bulldogs will play at Bellevue University (3-4). Kickoff is slated for 4:30 p.m. CT.