The women’s soccer team played an evenly matched Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) game against Jarvis Christian University (JCU), but one goal by the Saints gave them the win. The women improved to 3-3-1 overall and 2-2-0 in the conference, while JCU dropped to 2-4-1 and 1-2-1 in the conference.
History
The Saints have a dominant record of 10-0-1 against the Bulldogs, with the tie coming in 2021 when both teams failed to score.
Game highlights
London Suarez made her first start guarding the net for the Saints. She performed effectively by thwarting three attempts from JCU. Leah Tapia took three different shots on goal, but none went through. Lyndee Rheinberger also made two attempts, but the half ended with no goals scored.
OLLU keeper Samantha Valadez took over defending the net in the second half. The period started with five Jarvis fouls and a yellow card to Briza Ibarra. After JCU keeper Andrea Cepeda saved a stab at a goal from Ez Valles, Emily Wissel-Littman followed to shoot one in and give the Saints the 1-0 lead.
Despite the high level of frustration, the Saints maintained their sportsmanship. JCU’s Brisa Ibarra was shown a yellow card followed by a red card 10 minutes later for a rough tackle. The Saints continued to battle after four straight fouls were called against them.
The Saints’ unity was evident in their aggressive offense, with five team members taking six shots on goal. Emily Wissell-Littmann’s decisive kick-in, proved to be the game-winning goal.
Leah Tapia led the team with four shots, while Rheinberger and Wissell-Littmann each took two shots on goal.
Cepeda recorded the loss for Jarvis as she played all 90 minutes. Suarez saved four for the Saints, while Valadez saved three and earned the win.
Both team’s stats were almost identical, with JCU taking 12 shots and OLLU taking 14; JCU with three corners and OLLU with four; and JCU recorded six saves, while OLLU had eight.
What’s next
Looking ahead, the Saints will be on the road, traveling to the University of the Southwest in Hobbs, N.M., on Thursday. They will then head to Dallas on Saturday for a game against Paul Quinn College.