Marquette University Athletics
Marquette Remains Undefeated in Spring Play
4/9/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
April 5, 2008
CARY, N.C. - The Marquette women's soccer team remained undefeated in spring play with a 3-1 win at Duke and a 1-1 draw against UNC-Greensboro on Saturday, April 5 at WakeMed Soccer Park formerly named SAS Park in Cary, N.C. The Golden Eagles move to 3-0-2 overall in spring play.
In Marquette's first match of the day, it tied UNC Greensboro, 1-1, in two 35-minute halves. The Spartans struck first with a goal in the eighth minute when a UNC Greensboro player got on the end of a long service and scored near post.
The Golden Eagles countered and created numerous chances on set plays and services from the wings. Ashley Bares gave Marquette the equalizer in the 23rd minute. Michelle Compty fed Bares the the ball from about 25 yards out. Bares then took on a few Spartan defenders and beat UNC Greensboro's keeper on the left side. Despite not being able to find the back of the net for the game-winning goal, the Golden Eagles out-shot the Spartans, 9-4.
"Once again, the team showed a lot of character throughout the game. We fell behind early but kept on playing," said head coach Markus Roeders. "We were pleased about the chances we created especially on corners and several free kicks. It could have easily led to two or three goals if we would have been more optimistic on finishing our chances. It is definitely something we need to keep working on as we move forward. Ashley had a nice finish to tie the game and their goalkeeper came up with a couple of terrific saves in the second half."
The Golden Eagles had a quick 10-minute breather before playing Duke for two 40-minute halves. Yet, even with the quick turnaround, Marquette came out strong with a lot of urgency and passion. Marquette jumped out quickly with its first score just over five minutes into the game. Brittany Bares fed Julia Victor on the run. Victor took a couple of touches before sending the ball past Duke's keeper.
The Golden Eagles maintained their momentum and enjoyed long stretches of excellent attacking, possession and denying any opportunites to the Blue Devils. However, the Blue Devils scored their only goal of the game in the 16th minute when Marquette's clear was rebounded by a Duke player and knocked in the net.
Danielle Martens scored MU's go-ahead goal to finish the first half in the 28th minute. Katie Kelly found Martens on a service from the right side who tapped it in the empty net.
The second half started slow with neither team creating many opportunities and most of the play being in the midfield. Duke started to press in the last 15 minutes of the game, but Marquette responded as Kelly served a free kick into the 18-yard box. Compty fought to get on the end of the ball to knock it in for MU's third and final goal of the day. Even with Duke's final push, Marquette's defense held together and the Golden Eagles finished the game with a 7-5 shots advantage.
"It was a terrific result for our team," said Roeders of the win over Duke. "We played with a lot of energy and did an excellent job of pressing. They are very talented and have enjoyed much success, but for the second weekend in a row, we saw how much our team has improved in a short period of time as we played some good soccer. Our goalkeeper and team defending is sound, the midfield is playing well distributing the ball and our front line is optimistic finishing plays. This was our best performance against a strong team and it showed how much potential our team has for the future."
The Golden Eagles return to action on Sunday, April 13 to host the BIG EAST/Big Ten Showdown. Marquette will play Northwestern at 10:30 a.m., and Wisconsin at 1:15 p.m., at Valley Fields.
