MU Shuts Out Pittsburgh, 2-0

Oct. 26, 2008

MILWAUKEE -

BIG EAST Tournament Bracket in PDF Format

On an incredibly windy Sunday afternoon at Valley Fields where wind gusts exceeded 40 miles per hour, the Marquette women's soccer team used two first-half goals to take down Pittsburgh, 2-0, in the two teams regular season finale. Sophomore Ashley Bares and freshman Danielle Martens each scored for Marquette who improved to 10-6-3 overall and finished BIG EAST play with a 6-3-2 record. MU's 10 wins marks the 13th consecutive season it has reached 10 or more wins.

"We are pleased with the result," said head coach Markus Roeders. "We knew what we had to do today and that was to come in and get a positive result to host the quarterfinal match Sunday. With the conditions today, I thought the team responded very well. For us to score two goals in the first half and create numerous other chances was very positive. Overall, I thought both teams had better chances in the first 45 minutes. It was good that our forwards put a couple of goals away and I am pleased with their performance. All-around, I wouldn't say it was our best game of the year, but we were effective. Everyone got a chance to contribute and that is important this time of year. The main thing is that we mentally and physically rebounded after Friday. These ladies stepped up and we got the result that we wanted."

With the win, the Golden Eagles clinch the No. 2 American Division seed in the BIG EAST Conference Tournament. Marquette will host National Division No. 3 seed Rutgers in the quarterfinals on Sunday, Nov. 2, at 1 p.m. at Valley Fields. The home quarterfinal match marks the third time since MU joined the league in 2005 that it has played its quarterfinal match on its home turf.

"We know what we are playing for and we know Sunday will be a tough match. The further you go, the tougher the matches get. We have a whole week to prepare for Rutgers, and I know we will be ready," said Roeders.

Marquette immediately pushed into Pittsburgh territory right off the opening whistle and less than a minute into the game the Golden Eagles were awarded corner kick. In transition following the corner kick Pitt had arguably its best opportunity of the game at the 1:19 mark as Katelyn Ruhe broke away from MU's defense and went one on one with freshman keeper Natalie Kulla. Ruhe was unsuccessful with her attempt and sent her shot right into the hands of Kulla who denied a potential early score.

Marquette scored its first goal of the game, and its earliest goal of the season, in the seventh minute. Freshman Rachael Sloan sent the ball into the box where it was knocked around while the two teams tried to gain possession. Bares got control of the ball, took a couple steps and launched her shot in that hit the crossbar and bounced in.

About 20 minutes later, the Golden Eagles went ahead 2-0 at the 25:18 mark. Bares passed a through ball on the ground to Martens who turned on her defender and knocked her shot in past Pitt's keeper Morie Kephart.

From then on, Marquette continued to press looking to cushion its lead, but could only manage three shots for the remainder of the game.

For the game, the two teams were nearly even in the shots column, with Pittsburgh holding the slight advantage, 10-7, but the Golden Eagles made the most of their opportunities putting four shots on target. Ironically, much of the opportunities Marquette created were in the first half when it was playing against the wind. Overall, seven different Golden Eagles stepped up offensively and got shots off.

In goal, Kulla and junior Chelsey Turner combined for the clean sheet as Kulla played the first 45 minutes and made five saves, while Turner the second half. The Golden Eagle defense was sound again not allowing a shot on goal in the second frame.