Flurry of Goals Not Enough for Gonzaga Women’s Soccer in 5-3 Loss to Utah Valley
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Gonzaga defender Lauren Chin prepares to throw the ball in. Credit: Lauren Chin/Instagram [/caption]
Gonzaga women's soccer (2-4) likely had one of the best stretches a team will pull off on a pitch this season. In a six-minute stretch in the second half, the Bulldogs rattled off three goals against the Utah Valley Wolverines (3-2-1), after not scoring in their previous 282 minutes combined.
But in the other 84 minutes of this game, there were plenty of breakdowns and bad bounces for the Bulldogs as UVU scored five times, pushing Gonzaga to its third straight loss.
The Zags definitely had reason to pack it in, going into halftime down 3-0, and the next Wolverine score occurring seven minutes into the second half. The pairing of the four-goal deficit, combined with the demoralizing ways they were scored, was surely frustrating for a team that was struggling offensively. Even though the Bulldogs built some momentum going forward, the urgency continues to pile up on a team that is now officially on a losing streak.
Falling into a Hole
After a throw-in on the left side in the 16th minute, UVU’s Faith Webber dropped off a slick pass to a cutting Ruby Hladek. With Bulldogs closing in on her, Hladek snatched the ball back with a hesitation move akin to prime Jamal Crawford that sent Taylor Gentry out of position. Zags keeper Michaela McCollum came towards the action and out of the net, but began to retreat as defender Lauren Chin ran back to help. Hladek then took a shot that deflected off Chin’s leg and rolled into the net as McCollum was headed in the wrong direction.
About 20 minutes later, Wolverines goalie Leah Wolfe performed a dropkick that was headed twice before falling into the grasp of her teammate Sadie Beardall on the left side of the pitch. Beardall dribbled past Chin and Hannah Gray before firing it inside to Jacie Wood, who was stationed right in front of the net. McCollum was guarding the near post and had no shot to defend Wood’s small toetap as the ball flew to the left of her for the second goal of the game.
The biggest defensive collapse occurred with about 30 seconds to go in the half. The Wolverines had the ball in the attacking third and off a pass on the right side, Jasmine Lim served the ball up near the goal to see if she could create something right before the half. She did just that as McCollum waited for the ball to get there, but Hladek raced in, boxed her out, and dumped it off to Lulie McFarlane, who knocked it through three Gonzaga defenders in the area and into the net.
In the second half, the Zags made a change at keeper, inserting redshirt freshman Sydney Head into the net for her first action of the season. She was tested quickly as the Wolverines continued their ball pressure out of the break. At 52’, Hladek slyly stole the ball from Samantha Snorsky as many of the Bulldogs were headed the other way. She kicked it ahead to Webber, who only had Gentry to beat in the box before reaching Head. Webber cut to her right, and Head mirrored her movements, but the shot was fired back into the left corner for her fourth goal of the season and Utah Valley’s fourth score of the game.
It was also Webber’s 52nd career goal with the Wolverines, a program record the graduate student initially set last season.
Digging out of the Divot
GU’s comeback attempt began on a penalty kick. In the 72nd minute, the team’s leading scorer, Katelyn Rigg, raced for a through ball on the right side of the box. Wolf came out of the net to retrieve the ball and went for a slide tackle, but got all Rigg and no ball, with the contact occurring just inside the box. Rigg fired the penalty kick to the right side of the goal, and Wolf guessed right. But she was just late as the shot whizzed just off her fingertips and into the net. The senior keeper was frustrated with how the sequence unfolded, and Wolverines head coach Chris Lemay subbed her out and inserted Stacey Barresi into the net.
Not even two minutes later, the ball was boomed down the right side from midfield to Snorsky – her bread and butter. She was cut off by a defender, but worked it back to Emily Todd, who came over for assistance. She and Snorsky seemingly switched positions, and Todd served up a perfect shot on the left side of the net to an unguarded Brooke Metcalfe. With Alexis Parker boxing out Barresi and a defender in front of the net, Metcalfe headed the ball in squarely to cut the UVU lead in half.
The Bulldogs did win the corner kick battle 7-2 in this affair and scored one of their goals in these opportunities. Surprisingly enough, the shot was made with no assistance – at least from another Zag. Makayla Werner, who is GU’s preferred corner taker, lofted the ball high enough that Barresi opted to jump for it. But she didn’t catch it cleanly, and it slipped through her hands on the way down, dropping into the net and cutting the Wolverines’ lead to one. Lemay put Wolf back into the game after the misplay with Gonzaga looking to do the improbable with 13 minutes remaining.
Dagger to Thwart Comeback
In the 82nd minute, Hladek scored her second goal of the game – this time returning the favor on a penalty kick. After receiving a through ball, she was tripped by Todd in the box as she drove closer and closer to the net. The savvy senior used a hesitation move again on the penalty kick, as the slight pause caused Head to cheat to her left, allowing Hladek to easily score in the other direction.
Simply put, Utah Valley is an amazing soccer program. They have three consecutive WAC regular-season titles and have gone unbeaten in conference play in each of the last two seasons for a reason. They proved why with their aggressiveness on the ball, besting Gonzaga in shots on goal and time of possession. Although the Zags did thunder back in this game, there is reasonable question about how they will continue to create scoring chances moving forward. A penalty kick and a misplayed corner kick aren’t necessarily sustainable engines of offense, and things seem to be reeling on the defense’s backline.
Early in the season, Chin broke a finger on her left hand and has been playing through it with a brace on. McCollum was subbed from the net in this one, and even with 20 saves this season, she has posted a .690 save percentage — a mark that is third to last in the WCC. Even though Rigg got more action, Amelia Severn’s presence wasn’t felt. There are concerns at each level that head coach Katie Benz and the Zags need to get ironed out before conference play starts in two weeks.
The Bulldogs will head to Fort Worth next for a date with TCU (5-1) on Fri, September 12 at 5 PM PT.
