COLUMBIA, Mo.— For the first time since the 2008 season, the William Woods University women's soccer team will be heading to the American Midwest Conference (AMC) Tournament Finals, as they upset No. 1 seed Columbia College 1-0, on Monday night.
The Owls (12-6-2; 8-1-2 AMC), shocked the Cougars (11-6-1; 10-1 AMC) and its fans very early, as a corner kick was awarded to WWU in the 43
rd minute.
Ashley Deckard placed the ball perfectly onto the head of fellow senior
Jamie Palermo and she was able to flick the ball past Cougar goaltender Flavia Rosado, giving the Owls a 1-0 lead just 1:48 into the game.
"It is always great to score early in this sport, but so much more important in the playoffs," said head coach
Randy Hall. "Jamie (Palermo), has really scored some great goals for us the past three years and this one likely ranks at or near the top."
He added, "It was a great driven service from Ashley (Deckard), and a picture perfect finish from Jamie that really set the tone for the night."
Columbia picked up the pressure throughout the rest of the half, as they went on a 4-0 shot run, but the William Woods defense, along with goaltender
Brittany Griffin, held tough and kept the one goal lead intact.
The Owls had one final shot attempt off yet another corner kick, but
Haley Pipes shot was blocked by Taylor Hagenhoff with six minutes remaining. WWU, however, still headed to the break ahead 1-0 in a very defensive minded game.
In the second half, the Cougars offense continued its offensive pressure, totaling two shots in the first seven minutes, but the first attempt in the 46
th minute went wide, while the other at the 52:51 mark, was blocked by the WWU defense.
Looking to extend its one goal lead, William Woods recorded its first shot in the second half at the 66:26 mark, but
Jaclyn Zilch's shot went high over the crossbar.
As the clock continued to tick down, the WWU defense continued to fend off a Cougar offense that was desperate to find the equalizer. CC had one final chance to tie the game in the 81
st minute, but Jordan Poire shot went wide and that would be the final scoring opportunity for both teams', as the Owls held on for the one goal victory.
"The defense was really phenomenal tonight," Hall said. "CC really wanted to challenge us over the top and the center backs handled every ball with great partner shape and individual technique. Then we missed a mark late in the game and have their number 21 (Katelyn Palmer) given an eternity of space from inside ten yards, luckily we witnessed Brittany (Griffin) and
Amy Faus combine their efforts to keep it out of the net."
The Owls totaled five shots in the game and were led by Pipes having two, while Palermo, Zilch and
Brooke Hendrix added one shot each. Griffin, meanwhile, collected two saves on the night.
With the win, the Owls will now take on No. 2-seeded Missouri Baptist University on Thursday in St. Louis, Missouri. The Spartans also advanced to the title game, after defeating Park University 4-1. Kick-off for the game is TBA.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com on Wednesday for a full preview of Thursday's title game.Â
