This was a big game. A win would narrow the location for conference tournament between Loyola, us and Butler, to between just us and Loyola. If we were to lose this game, it would put us behind Butler and in the potential position to lose the regular season for the first time in eight years or something crazy like that. The win would put us in a position to tie with Loyola to be co-champs, assuming both teams were to win out on the rest of their schedules.
Anyways, we took Engelmann Field, in what felt like ages since our last home game, wearing our pink arm bands to support breast cancer and ready to take on the Butler Bulldogs. Due to the cold weather, our “pink out” was covered by our fans’ jackets and sweatshirts but the support and raffle donations to research on breast cancer still had a satisfying outcome. It is pretty sweet to think that two teams kicking a ball around a field can help raise money for something as big as breast cancer. Athletics continued to raise money on Saturday at the Women’s Volleyball game as well, and athletes from both teams, us and v-ball, volunteered at restaurants off of campus earlier in the week to raise even more money. By Saturday it was a successful pink week.
On to the game: This game was great. We played great soccer and came away with a decisive 5-0 result. The first half the Bulldogs held us to one goal, scored by Teegs. Sperl served a corner in and it popped back out to her. She re-served and Teegs finished with a great header, 1-0. Their keeper had some nice saves as Canada, Hagen, Talbert, and Kreuser all had chances and we out shot them, 10-1, leaving Kane to freeze as we kept the play away from her.
The second half we came out and pulled them apart in their backline. This led to back to back Louise Vraney goals, both assisted by Teegarden. I wish I could do justice in describing how the first one came about, but it was one of the sweetest balls I have ever seen Teegarden play with the outside of her foot… over their back line and dropping just perfectly for Lou to run onto with a perfectly timed run, pushed it past the keeper, 2-0. Lou knocked in another, assisted by Teegarden again, 3-0. Next came a goal by Laurel Ragalie, 4-0.
If those four goals weren’t exciting enough, why not throw in a school record being broken. Hagen knocked in our final goal, another assist from Teegarden, to give her 17 goals on the season and make it 5-0.
So, the coaches were yelling to the center ref as Butler was about to kick off (to switch the game ball) I kind of thought in disbelief, “Did Hagen really just kick the ball so hard that she put a hole in it?” No Kate, it was the ball used to score the 17th goal and set a school record for most goals scored in a season, and now becomes a “trophy” of that accomplishment. My question is does she get to keep the 18th, 19th, 20th and so on “goal” balls because our season is no where near being over…
Anyways, I don’t know how many soccer balls a dorm room can hold, but I do know that Kane only had to make two saves the whole game. Neither, a superman save, but simply catching the ball as if in warm-up or playing catch with their forwards.
Sunday we didn’t have a game, so hopefully you can join us back at Englemann next Friday for a game vs. Detroit.
