ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul women's soccer team (8-1-2, 5-1-2 NSIC) edged the Golden Eagles of Minnesota Crookston (1-8-2, 0-7-1 NSIC) 1-0 for a third straight victory behind Sophia Haase's game-winning goal on a windy Sunday afternoon at Sea Foam Stadium.
Head coach Steve Bellis on the win, "We had a good weekend and earned six points on the board. We were defensively rock solid and we created a lot of great chances."
With today's win, Bellis earned his 150th NCAA victory after recording his 120th win as head coach at Concordia last weekend. Bellis spent 2006-10 at the helm of St. Catherine University (NCAA Division III) where he accumulated 28 wins and has now increased his winning tally to 122 at CSP to mark his 150 all-time win.
Sophia Haase was once again the game-changer for the Navy and Gold, scoring her team-leading seventh goal and fourth game-winning goal of the season.
In the first half, the Golden Bears were on the prowl, firing off six quick shots and taking five corner kicks to keep the UMC goalkeeper on her feet. CSP held possession throughout the majority of play but were unable to capitalize on a scoring opportunity.
Concordia out shot Minnesota Crookston 14-0 in half, forcing UMC to make seven saves heading into the break.
In the second half, CSP came out ready to see the net, taking just 36 seconds to get on the board. Brooke Nelson sent a corner kick shot flying to the front of the net to send Haase jumping through the hair, using her head to send the shot straight to the back of the net.
With the Golden Bears up 1-0, the Golden Eagles worked to get the ball down the pitch where they tallied their first shot of the day, sending the ball flying straight left of the goal.
Minnesota Crookston would go on to send just two shots on goal, both being saved by goalkeeper Kayla Matuzak.
18 more shots and one more corner kick would round out the offensive attack for the Navy and Gold and give the defense their second straight shutout and sixth of the season.
Leading the defense that allowed just three shots was Belle Abruzzo and Clare Snapko who each played the full 90-minute outing. Abruzzo recorded her team-leading eighth full game of the season.
Junior goalkeeper Kayla Matuzak earned her third start of the season in the net, making two saves to bring her season total to five. Matuzak tallied her second shutout of the season and fourth of her career.
Haase registered six shots with four coming on goal to bring her season total to 42 total shots. Her 23 shots on goal this season send her to the top of the NSIC standings, sharing the lead with Madelyn White from Augustana.
With her six points this weekend, Haase cracks the top-10 in career points scored in program history.
Lexi Pettit led the team in shots, charting a career-high seven while also logging three shots on goal.
In addition to Haase and Pettit, 8 players collected a shot including, Jada Cannady, McKayla Stockness, Clare Snapko, Brooke Nelson, Stella Nielsen, Olivia Lovell, Morgan Bilczewski and Lainie Wehmhoff. Wehmhoff's six shots marked a career-high.
The Golden Bears will return to the pitch next weekend for a pair of NSIC games, facing the Mavericks of Minnesota State at home on Friday and then traveling to face the Huskies of St. Cloud State on Sunday.
