The 15 mph south breeze put Northwest Missouri State women’s soccer team at a slight disadvantage against Emporia State.
Northwest started Tuesday’s afternoon game at the Bearcat Pitch going into the wind.
The Bearcats made the wind a moot point as they scored two first-half goals that carried them to a 2-1 victory that counts in the MIAA standings. Northwest improved to 5-2-2 overall and 2-0 in the MIAA.
“It’s a great start for us,” said Northwest senior defender Jacque Dedovesh said. “It’s a great start to the week.”
The star of the first 45 minutes was sophomore Tori Von Mende. She scored two goals, and her second one came from 15 yards out when she whistled her kick past Nikki Schmitz with 12 minutes left.
Both of her goals came in a span of 3 minutes. The Bearcats’ relentless attack took some of the starch out of Emporia State defense.
“We work well together,” Von Mende said. “We were just in the flow of things. We had good passing and good talking.”
Just as impressive was the way Northwest defense responded to the desperation by Emporia State.
The Hornets were trying to take advantage of playing with a stiff south wind at their backs. It worked for them early in the game when they put the pressure on Northwest’s back three and sophomore goal keeper Kelsey Adams.
With 1:40 left in the first half, Adams faced a blistering shot from way out. The ball was headed for the upper half of the goal. Adams timed her jump perfectly and tipped the ball over the goal, preserving the first-half shutout.
“I expected it,” Dedovesh said of Adams’ save. “I saw the ball and said ‘Kelsey jump.’ And she jumped and made the save.”
Northwest, though, needed a few minutes at the start of the game to adjust to the wind. Much of the action was near Adams.
Slowly, the Bearcats took control, and 15 minutes into the contest, they nearly scored on a shot by sophomore midfielder Anna Calgaard.
Northwest kept the pressure on and finally Emporia State buckled with 15:22 left in the first half. Assists from junior midfielder Amanda Bundrant and senior forward Tammie Eiberger led to the first goal byVon Mende.
The Bearcats weren’t satisfied with just that one goal. They kept attacking and scored again.
Von Mende nearly had a hat trick in a 5-minute span, but her third attempt at scoring was stopped by the Hornets defense.
“The heat was a big factor,” Von Mende said. “I could tell they were getting tired. We took advantage of that.”
With a 2-goal lead, Northwest only needed to play smart in the second half to secure the victory. The Bearcats had a couple of opportunities to score that just missed. More importantly, they prevented Emporia State from getting good scoring chances.
The Hornets finally broke through with a goal by Morgan Wheeler with 5 minutes left, and that built a bit of drama.
Emporia State pushed forward with 4 minutes left. Northwest defense was organized enough to prevent a shot.
The Hornets kept attacking. Northwest was up for the challenge.
“We just had to keep our head in situations like that,” Dedovesh said. “It makes us work. We are going to get scored on.
“The rest of the game was awesome. Kelsey played great. She’s the best goalie in conference.”
Northwest has won two straight and is looking to keep its momentum going for Thursday’s game against Truman at the Bearcat Pitch at 4 p.m.
The Bearcats finish the week with a 6 p.m. game at Washburn on Saturday.
“I think everybody will be ready for these games,” Von Mende said. “They are big games. They count for conference. We are not really used to it. But I’m excited to get all three games in and see how it goes.”
— David Boyce, NWMSU Sports Information —