Soccer beats Missouri Southern, gets first home winning season

By Ladi Akitunde

The last six times the Griffon soccer team played in a match with a one goal difference, they have been on the wrong side of the score. One smart strike from freshman Abby Widrig changed that and gave Western a win against Missouri Southern State University. The win also gave Western a winning record at home this season, going 4-3-1.

The rainy conditions and damp playing surface didn’t hurt the Griffons in this game. Early on, the team displayed great defensive tactics. The Griffons held the Lions to only one shot in the first half: letting the forwards of Western go to work on the Lions backs.

The Griffons tried their luck nine times in the opening half. Three of the nine shots came from midfielder Mary Ohm who played at a very nice pace. The good play from the starting 11 carried over into the second half. In the 50th minute, Widrig beat her marker and put the ball in the lower netting giving Widrig her 7th goal of the season.

Eleven minutes later, Missouri Southern midfielder Shannon Kuhn summed up the night for the Lions by receiving the first and only yellow card of the game. The Griffons

Photo: Matthew Fowler

remained in top form for the rest of the night allowing just one corner kick in the 2nd half and allowing only two more shots for the rest of the night.

The win was one of the most complete efforts on the season for Western. The offense and defense played with urgency all night. Griffon’s midfielder Jessica Martin believes that the team’s movement helped them succeed against their opponents.

“We passed the ball around a lot and moved off the ball well which allowed us more shots and shots on goal,” Martin said. “Our game plan was to just drop down our offensive center mid to stay with their stopper. Overall, I would rate our performance an eight out of ten.”

Forward Desi Swanson, who has started every game this season, believes that the reason for the win was winning possession of the ball.

“We just came out and pressured the ball,” Swanson said. “We won the 50/50s which allowed us to create more offense getting us so many more shots.”

Most final home games are a send off to all the seniors who play on the sports team. With this year’s team having no seniors on board, the win is more about finishing the season with a winning record at home. Martin knows that the team can take solace in having a winning record at Spratt.

“The winning record at home means we have turned one of the many pages we want to turn,” Martin said.

“It felt amazing to win a close one and come out on the positive side of things. It was a big accomplishment for our team.”

Swanson feels that the win is a step forward for the team.

“It felt awesome winning that last home game,” Swanson said. “It finally gave us a winning home season which is a big step for us.”