Stevens Point, Wis. – The Gustavus women's soccer team dropped it's second game of the season to UW-Stevens Point by the score of 4-0 on Saturday afternoon. The Gusties return home after going 0-2-0 on the opening weekend of their 2012 campaign. UW-Stevens Point improves to 1-1-0 with the victory.
In the 13th minute, UW-Stevens Point first-year Shelley Samuel found the back of the net on an assist from Angela Gallow, putting the Pointers up 1-0. From there, the Pointers would never look back, going on to score two more goals in the first half to grab a 3-0 by the break. Kim Jobke extended the UW-Stevens Point lead to two on helpers from Gallow and Jessica Ruch. Sammy Greer capped off the opening frame with a goal at the 26:45 mark to put the Pointers up 3-0.
Gallow brought the scoring to a close with a goal of her own at the 65:47 mark. She led all scorers in the match with four points on a goal and two assists. Jobke, Samuel, and Greer all pitched in one goal, and Jessica Ruch produced a game-high three assists.
Outshot 20-3 in the contest, the Gusties struggled to mount an opportunity to make a come back, but a turnaround in the second half gave the Gustie women optimism going forward. "The second half today was a different game where we competed and played with Stevens Point," remarked head coach Laura Burnett-Kurie. "Our focus Wednesday is putting together a full 90 minutes and continuing to improve our possession."
After allowing 13 shots in the first half (nine of which were on goal), the Gustie defense stiffened, allowing just seven shots (two on goal) in the second half. Keeper
Jessica Richert (Sr., Freeburg, Ill.) mounted seven saves on the afternoon, facing 11 shots on goal.
Burnett-Kurie feels that although two losses on the weekend are disappointing, patience is a valuable thing. "After the game we talked about how changing our style of play is going to be a process. This weekend was our first step in that process. Now we have to move on to the next step, which is our game against Martin Luther."
The Gustie women will be home for the first time this season on Wednesday Sept. 5 against Martin Luther College at 5:00 p.m. Wednesday's match will take place on the junior varsity field located west of the Swanson Tennis Center.
