The Wooster womenís soccer team began their season with a historic unbeaten streak and was seemingly unstoppable in all their matches. However, their recent performances have left despondent fans asking ìWhat happened?”
After an uncharacteristic series of matches leaving the Scots with two losses and a tie in conference play, it is a fair question.
The Scots currently have a respectable record of 8-2-4 in all competitions, but both losses have come in NCAC action.†† It is difficult to tell whether this sudden change of pace is attributable to harder competition in the conference, complacency or both.
During fall break, the Scots travelled to Wittenberg University hoping to extend their unbeaten streak.† Instead of a win, the Scots were forced to relive their nightmare season ender last year versus the Tigers.† The game went on for a whole 110 minutes before either team could assert themselves as a victor. Unfortunately again for the Scots, this last-gasp shot came from a player in a red shirt.† Wittenberg scored with only 28 seconds left to secure the win and hand the Scots their first loss of the season.
Despite the last-second goal, Scot goalie Michele Ring í13 did everything possible, keeping the Scots in a game in which they were outshot in an alarming discrepancy of 20-8 and generally overmatched. Ring had one of her best games of the year with a season-high eight saves.
Wooster outshot opponents Allegheny College and Earlham College in their next two matchñups,† yet the Scots were still unable to secure a win in either game.† The game versus the Gators was a rather uneventful affair in which Wooster conceded their second draw in the third double overtime game in a row.† The Scots battled Allegheny College for a full 110 minutes to no avail with the game ending in a scoreless draw. The Scots had trouble creating offensive opportunities and scoring chances which has become an ever-increasing area of concern of late.
The squadís most recent game saw the Scotsí dreams of bouncing back in conference play dashed by a dominant Earlham squad on Oct. 10. The Scots did however manage to get on the score sheet in this outing.† Captain Liz Mott í11 played the ball with her head on a corner kick allowing Lida Bliokur í12 to cheekily back-heel the ball past the keeper in the 82nd minute.† This one moment of brilliance was not enough to mask the Scotsí overall disappointing performance as they allowed Earlham to score three goals.
Despite the sloppy conditions of the field, the level of play was not up to expectations.† The Scots have had a week to prepare themselves for their next match at Ohio Wesleyan University tomorrow. If recent play continues, the team better pack shovels alongside their shin-guards in hopes of digging themselves out of the hole they have created in NCAC games. The recent struggles have left the team near the bottom of the conference standings.† It is a crucial juncture of the season for the Scots, who face five more conference opponents before the seasonís end.
