uget Sound women’s soccer team, as they went 2-0 over the last seven days to expand their overall winning streak to four in a row. The Logger women entered the week with plenty of momentum, having won two games in a row against Whitman and Whitworth the previous week, despite losing some key seniors to injuries. The team travelled to Parkland, Wash. on Wednesday, Sept. 28 to renew their rivalry with the Pacific Lutheran Lutes.
Almost from the beginning, the Loggers controlled the tempo of the game, taking six shots in the first half to only one for the Lutes. But while they had several good shots early in the game, the Loggers could not capitalize early and went into the half with score tied 0-0.
Despite the discouraging results in the first half, the Loggers continued to attack the goal in the second half until finally, in the 58th minute, the team was rewarded for their perseverance with a stroke of luck. Following the second consecutive corner kick by senior Mikaela Freeman (Alameda, Calif.), a miscommunication on defense led to a PLU player kicking the ball into her own goal, breaking the tie and giving the Loggers a 1-0 lead that they would not relinquish.
The offense kept up its intensity, scoring twice more before the end of the half. The first goal came after the ball was played in to Lutes goalie Lauren Chambard, who attempted to clear the ball from PLU’s end of the pitch. However, the kick was blocked by Loggers star forward, senior Christine Isabella (Salt Lake City, Utah) who then corralled the ball and buried it in the back of the net from about 15 yards out. This goal was Isabella’s sixth of the season and marked the third straight game where she had scored at least once.
Isabella was not done impacting the game for the Loggers, however, as she added an assist just one minute later, passing the ball up to senior forward Jenny Moore (Kent, Wash.) who broke through the defense and took on the goalie one-on-one, eventually working the ball past Chambard for another goal. This goal in the 67th minute ended the scoring and gave the Loggers a margin of victory of 3-0.
Puget Sound controlled the game almost from start to finish, dominating both the play on the field and the stat sheet. The offense was so dominant that they almost never allowed the Lutes to enter their side of the field, holding them to only two shots, neither of which were on goal. But after a fairly easy victory against Pacific Lutheran, the Loggers found themselves locked in a tight defensive showdown against the George Fox Bruins on Saturday, Oct 1.
Again, the Loggers dominated the stat sheet for the first 43 minutes, compiling nine shots, but had nothing to show for their efforts. That is, until the 44th minute, when senior midfielder Abby Goss (Spokane, Wash.) fired the ball toward the net. Though Bruin goalie Alyssa Montero was able to deflect the ball away from the goal, it bounced straight to Logger freshman Robin Viera (Seattle, Wash.) who was able to put the ball in the back of the net for the go-ahead goal.
The Loggers were able to make their slim lead hold up for the rest of the game, as the Logger defense was able to hold George Fox to four shots, two of which were on goal. This game capped off a dominating stretch by the Loggers’ defense which, led by sophomore goalie Kara Merfield (Bellingham, Wash.), has not allowed a single goal in their last four games.
Their 2-0 week moves the Loggers to 7-2 overall and 5-1 in conference play, putting them in great position as they set out on a road-trip that takes them to Lewis and Clark and Pacific College in the upcoming week.