<ast week, Carleton’s Women’s soccer team had three matches, all on the road, and came up with 2 conference wins and an out-of-conference tie.
The Knights’ three-game road swing began with a trip to Winona, Minnesota and a match against Saint Mary’s University on October 12th. Led by Layne Teska’s ’14 first career goal, the Knights pulled out a 1-0 victory against the Cardinals. The goal came just before the end of the first half, when Karlie Haug ’13 volleyed a free kick from Abby Wills ‘12 off of the Saint Mary’s goalkeeper. Teska then slid in for the finish. The Knight’s defense was led by goalkeeper Jackie Lombard ’15, who made two saves in her first collegiate start for the Knights.
Carleton took to the pitch again on Saturday the 15th, this time against Hamline University. The game once again featured stellar defense from the Knights. Although this time it was Beth Ashinsky ’13 in goal, the result was the same: a shutout, in which Ashinsky notched five key saves, including two crucial shut-downs during the 84th minute.
Strong play from the midfield supported the Knights’ defense. Carleton first broke through in the 41st minute, when Wills’s pass through the middle found forward Bailey Ulbricht ’15. Ulbricht beat a defender, and placed a left-footed shot by the keeper for the first goal of the match. After the halftime break, Carleton added to their lead with a goal from Niki Tomita ’12 in the 50th minute. After beating several defenders, Zoe Suche ’13 slotted a perfect ball into the box towards Tomita. The defending MIAC Player of the Year took care of the rest, striking the ball past the post and into the back of the net. That 2-0 lead lasted the entire match, and allowed the Knights to move into playoff position, only 3 points behind MIAC-leader St. Benedict. Nearly all of the players contributed time on the field, with Kaitlyn Gerber ‘14 narrowly missing a goal in the final minutes.
The final game of the road-stretch took place this past Sunday in Wisconsin where the Knights faced UW-Eau Claire, a member of the WIAC conference. After near-misses in the first half from Haug and captain Linnea Carlson ’12,who recently returned from injury, the Knights were unable to score in the first half of the match. However, the Knights took control when Ulbricht and Wills combined once again, leading to Ulbricht’s third goal of the season in the 82nd minute. Unfortunately, the Knights’ lead lasted only until the 87th minute, when Paige LeGate, the leading scorer for the Blugolds, slotted a corner kick past Lombard. That tally tied it all up at 1 goal apiece. Despite two scoreless overtimes and several chances, the game ended in a scoreless tie.
This coming week the Knights look to maintain their playoff position, and potentially take over first place in the MIAC. On Saturday, Carleton hosts to Bethel University, and the following Wednesday it will be St. Thomas making the trip to Bell Field. Saturday’s game begins at 12 p.m.