|
 Marquette goalkeeper Natalie Kulla and UW-Milwaukee forward Sarah Hagen (Appleton North) continue to add to their impressive resumes as they close in on the end of their final regular season of women's college soccer – and their nationally ranked teams continue to win games. Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay coach Trevor Warren and the Phoenix continued their quest to qualify for the Horizon League tournament.
Get all the highlights in our weekly recap of the Golden Eagles, Panthers and Phoenix.
 Marquette (16-2-0, 9-1-0 Big East)
Friday: No. 7 Golden Eagles 2, St. John's 1. Sophomores Taylor Madigan (Waunakee) and Cara Jacobson (Shorewood) scored as Marquette held off the Red Storm (8-7-1, 4-5-0) in a Big East Conference match in Queens, N.Y. Caitlyn McLaughlin's 81st-minute goal ended the Golden Eagles' shutout streak at just less than 550 minutes, but St. John's was outshot 17-2 on the night and remained winless all-time in the teams' series (0-7-0). Madigan scored off a set piece in the 26th minute, as she brought down sophomore Maegan Kelly's corner kick and fired a shot past Red Storm goalkeeper Lauren Ferris to the upper left corner from 13 yards out for her sixth goal of the season. Jacobson made it 2-0 in the 76th, picking up the ball after Ferris knocked away a cross by freshman Mady Vicker (Whitefish Bay) and collecting her fourth of the year.
Sunday: No. 7 Golden Eagles 4, Syracuse 0. Kelly had two goals and an assist to add to her team lead in both categories and senior Natalie Kulla made three saves in her 41st career shutout as Marquette thumped the host Orange (7-6-3, 5-4-0) to clinch home-field advantage for the Big East tournament quarterfinals. The Golden Eagles scored all of their goals in the second half, including three in the opening 15 minutes, as they powered to their eighth consecutive victory. Kelly had the first two, as she scored off a rebound in the 48th and doubled the lead in the 54th with her 14th goal of the season. She then turned provider, as junior Ally Miller (Mequon Homestead) headed in Kelly's corner kick in the 60th for her first of the year and a 3-0 lead – she is the 18th player to score for Marquette this season. The final goal also came off a set piece, with junior midfielder Britney Scott converting after Lindsey Page flicked on a free kick by Megan Jaskowiak in the 77th. Kulla ranks second in NCAA Division I history in shutouts and continues to close in on leader Erin Guthrie, who posted 44 clean sheets for Rutgers from 2006 to '09. Kelly has 14 goals and 10 assists, and Marquette is 22-0-0 in her career when she has a goal or an assist. The Golden Eagles head into the final match of conference play tied with No. 24 West Virginia; the Mountaineers (13-4-0, 9-1-0), who close against Pittsburgh (2-11-4, 1-6-2) on Friday, hold the tiebreaker over Marquette thanks to a 3-1 victory Sept. 18.
Up next: vs. South Florida, 7 p.m. Saturday.
 UW-Green Bay (3-9-4, 1-3-2 Horizon)
Saturday: Phoenix 0, Youngstown State 0. Senior Maddie Drusch (Appleton Xavier) stopped seven shots for her fifth shutout of the season and the 16th of her career as Green Bay played out its fourth scoreless draw of the season. The tie against the host Penguins (3-8-3 overall) left the Phoenix in sixth place in the Horizon League – the last qualifying spot for the conference tournament – but Green Bay has only two league matches left while Cleveland State (1-3-1), Loyola, Ill. (0-3-2) and Youngstown State (0-3-2) all have three to play. "We had the possession and I felt like we were the better team after halftime and throughout overtime, but we just didn't finish our chances," Phoenix coach Trevor Warren said after his team was shut out for the fourth straight game and the 12th time this season. "We felt like this was a must-win game for us. We really needed to get the three points in the conference standings, but if we can get a result next week against Butler then we still have a chance." The Penguins had a 20-16 advantage in shots, including 8-5 in shots on goal. The only keeper in Phoenix history with more shutouts than Drusch is Barb Singer, who had 17½ from 1990 to '93. The NCAA no longer recognizes partial shutouts.
Up next: vs. Butler, noon Sunday.
 UW-Milwaukee (14-1-0, 6-0-0 Horizon)
Saturday: Panthers 4, Butler 1. Senior striker Sarah Hagen (Appleton North) scored twice to move into 13th place in NCAA history in career goals as UWM cruised past the Bulldogs (7-7-1, 2-3-0) in Indianapolis for its eighth consecutive victory. "It was a good win on the road, pretty convincing," Panthers coach Michael Moynihan said. "We felt it could have been 7-0 before we gave up the late goal. I was really happy with the goals that we scored in the second half. We created a ton of chances." Freshmen Kelsey Holbert and Morgan LaPlant had goals sandwiched around Hagen's quick strikes, which came in less than 4 minutes early in the second half. Hagen ripped a free kick from 31 yards out past Butler keeper Julie Burton into the upper corner of the net in the 49th, then beat Burton to a ball played through the box by freshman Krissy Dorre in the 52nd. The second goal was the 85th of Hagen's career, moving her past former Notre Dame standout Kerri Hanks (84, 2005 to '08). Next up on the list are Portland's Shannon MacMillan (1992 to '95) and North Carolina's April Heinrichs (1983 to '86), who each had 87, and the 88 by North Texas' Marilyn Marin (2000 to '03). Hagen also ranks 12th in NCAA history with an average of 1.08 goals per game. Freshman keeper Natalie Fettinger made six saves for UWM in her college debut, starting in place of injured junior Jamie Forbes, who had played every in goal minute this season.
Up next: at Loyola (Ill.), 7 p.m. Wednesday; at Illinois State, 1 p.m. Sunday (nc).
|
