Zach Tolman
Staff Writer
It is going to be a quiet trip back to Menomonie, Wisconsin for the University of Wisconsin-Stout Women’s Soccer team following a 2-0 loss to Springfield College in the 2013 Springfield College Invitational, hosted Friday night, at the Irv Schmid Sports Complex.
Springfield’s quick, aggressive offense controlled the ball the majority of the game, capitalizing on two of several scoring chances. The first goal came shortly into the second half for the Pride as senior midfielder Ashley Carresi fed classmate Kim Rasmussen who put the ball in the back right corner of the net after a collision with the Blue Devil’s forward Addy Maher to give Springfield a 1-0 lead.
“In the first half I think we all were just settling in,” said Rasmussen, a forward from Berlin, Conn. “It was our first half playing together, so we were creating the chances we just couldn’t put them away, the second half we knew if we are creating this many opportunities then you just have to finish one and I was the first one able to put one away.”
Springfield’s offense did much more than just test the Blue Devils goalie, Paige Meyer. The Pride displayed their defensive prowess, by keeping the ball away from senior Alix Hyduke. Hyduke, a senior forward, has had a notable start to her season scoring five goals in their first three games earning herself UW-Stout Athlete of the Week honors last week. Despite her offensive skill, Springfield junior defenseman Kelly Haines played tough against her all night, keeping her out of the scoring book.
“I thought that we played very well as a team, we defended well and we really starved her of the ball,” commented Springfield head coach John Gibson, entering his fourteenth season on the Pride sideline. “We had a lot of possession in the first half, I think that is about as good as we have played for a long time.”
With 6:15 remaining in the game, Springfield senior Vicky DiNatale found the ball in a very congested goal box and was able to launch it into the netting, tallying Springfield’s second and final goal of the night.
Last December, DiNatale was named to the Eastern College Athletic Conference New England Division III All-Star team, and proved once again that even though she may be a defenseman, she still has the ability to find the back of the net. The senior captain, from Weymouth, Mass., recorded four goals in the 2012 season, two of which being game-winning tallies.
Springfield has now advanced to 1-0 on the season and will host Westfield State University on Saturday night. The Owls are coming off of an overtime loss against Roger Williams in a close 1-0 game.