The West Chester women’s soccer team (6-2-3) took to the home field against the Mansfield Mountaineers (1-6-0) last Saturday afternoon.
Looking at the team statistics, it appears that the Golden Rams already had the upper hand in the match, but the team knows that they have to treat each match as serious as the next.
“We don’t look too much into the future of the season,” forward Kim Shoup said. “We know we have to take it one game and one practice at a time.”
The Golden Rams are currently coming off a loss against Kutztown from last Wednesday, but they know one loss will not affect them. By treating each game with a positive attitude they are able to remain focused, which is evident by the amount of wins they have already accumulated this season.
As soon as kickoff began, the Golden Rams were on the attack. The offense quickly kicked the ball down into the Mountaineers’ territory in an early attempt at a goal. The Golden Rams were relentless by pushing the ball towards their opponent’s goal and proceeded to dominate the playing field for the majority of the first half.
Most of the play in the first half occurred within the Mountaineers’ goal area. The Mountaineers were able to get into the Golden Rams’ territory a few times, but the home team’s strong defense thoroughly shut them out.
Rams’ goalkeeper Shannon Fedyk made a few good saves while Mountaineers keeper Alexis Wilhelm had to fight off the majority of the shots made within the first half.
The Golden Rams kept up their persistence throughout the first half. Despite their drive to score, keeper Wilhelm crushed their hopes by constantly making saves.
The match remained scoreless at the end of the first half.
The Golden Rams came out white-hot when the second half of the match began. With rest from half time, they caught a new wind of determination. Like the beginning of the match, the Golden Rams got the ball down the field early for the chance to score. Unlike their previous opportunities, they finally made a successful play at the 47th minute of the match.
Forward/midfielder Brianna Hires scored the first goal of match, assisted by midfielder/defenseman Noelle Harner, gaining a 1-0 lead for the Golden Rams early in the second half. All of their persistence to score paid off since a mere two minutes later, forward Marie D’Angelo scored a second goal.
Even though the Golden Rams had gained a two-goal lead against the Mountaineers, they continued to push for another goal. Mountaineers’ keeper Wilhelm was careful not to let another goal push past her, making a few good saves at the 52nd and 56th minutes of the match.
This did not stop the Golden Rams’ offense’s continued efforts. It was due to their determination and speed that the Mountaineers were not given many chances to score and the majority of the match was spent played in the Mountaineers’ goal area. The Golden Rams were not about to let their opponents score even once, as evident through their shots on the Mountaineers’ goal.
The Golden Rams continued their onslaught on the Mountaineers’ defense for the rest of the game. Shortly after some good saves by Wilhelm, midfielder Jen Hutchinson scored at the 64th minute, assisted by forward/midfielder Melissa McKeary.
The Golden Rams had increased their lead, forcing the match to be 3-0 with only twenty-six minutes left. With a three-goal deficit, the home team was not willing to allow the visiting team to score, and even pushed to score once more.
The rest of the match was a struggle for both teams to score. The Mountaineers were desperate to prevent a shut-out but the Golden Rams would not allow it.
The game ended in a West Chester victory with a 3-0-shutout win. Currently they remain 6-2-3 (4-2-3 in the PSAC conference) and have won a total of five shut-out games. The Golden Rams are quite the team to watch as they continue to push their way towards the PSAC championships with their aggressive play.
Deanna Vasso is a fourth-year student majoring in English with a minor in creative writing. She can be reached at DV670502@wcupa.edu.