The MU Ancilla Women's Soccer Team has accomplished many things this fall and most certainly added to that growing list in a 3-day span that included a 2-1 MCCAA win over St. Clair on Saturday followed up by a 2-1 win against the Bethel University JV team.
Saturday, October 15th
The Chargers took to their home field on Saturday looking to complete a season sweep over MCCAA foe, St. Clair. This game not only carried MCCAA implications, it was also Sophomore Day where Ellie Fausnaugh, Victoria Minix, Yareli Toledo, Itzel Toledo, Reese Danford, Margaret Schmidt, MacKenzie Matthews, Jane Wright, and Haylee Lesperance were all honored for their contributions to the Charger soccer program. With so much on the line, the Chargers came out very focused and ready to play. Abbigail Cutler broke up the tightly-contested and scoreless match with a goal in the 35th minute on an assist from Hayley Lesperance which led to a 1-0 Charger lead at the half.
The 2nd half started just as intensely as the first half with both teams looking for goals. Eventually, the Chargers found a second goal, this time from Alessandra Lozano on a beautiful header that came off of Abbigail Cutler's corner kick. St. Clair responded with a goal that came with 8 minutes left on the clock to cut the lead to 2-1. The Chargers' defense held tight for the remainder of the match which ended in a 2-1 win.
Coach Kalen Saddler was understandably excited after the match. "We knew today was a win-at-all-costs occasion. The entire week our girls were locked in on the game plan and they executed perfectly."
The win on Sophomore Day clearly meant a lot to Coach Saddler. "Winning on Sophomore Day is such a good feeling because this group of Sophomores have played a massive role in the program we are becoming. To see them rewarded with a win today is very satisfying."
The win over St. Clair secured the first sweep of an MCCAA opponent since the 2016-2017 season and keeps the Chargers in contention for a playoff birth with two MCCAA matches still to be played.
Monday, October 17th
Coming off of a hugely emotional Sophomore Day win on Saturday against St. Clair, Coach Kalen Saddler was very focused on making sure his team was focused and ready to go on Monday night as the Chargers returned to action against the Bethel University JV squad looking to set a new school record for wins in a season. Led by the dynamic scoring duo of Abbigail Cutler and Alessandra Lozano who have been on a hot streak, the Chargers were able to get that school record with a 2-1 win. Cutler got the scoring started with the 1st goal of the match while Lozano followed up with what turned out to be the game-winner. The Charger defense played very solidly down the stretch to hold on for the win.
Coach Saddler talked about the constant progress his team has made this season. "Every day we talk about being 1% better than the day before. This started with our first day of fall camp and I truly believe we have followed that process all year. I was very happy with our focus as we took on a non-conference opponent on the road in pretty tough weather conditions. It would be very easy to pack it in and just say it was not our night. Our girls did not do that. They stepped up and got the job done."
With the win, the Chargers move to 5-10 on the season. The 5th win sets a new school record for this improving program, something that was not lost on Coach Saddler. "I let the players know that while we are happy to have that school record, we don't want to be satisfied with 5 wins. We have work to do next week starting with a home contest on Wednesday against Kellogg at home."
