ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul women's soccer team (10-3-3, 7-3-3 NSIC) spooked the Cougars of Sioux Falls 1-0 in a crucial NSIC victory to keep their post-season sights intact on a rainy Halloween at Sea Foam stadium.
Sydney Potter and Sophia Haase would highlight the day for the Golden Bears, Haase scoring the game-winner with Potter making three crucial saves enroute to a career milestone.
Head coach, Steve Bellis on the win, "In some tough weather conditions, we showed some character and grit to get over the line tonight."
In the first half, it was a back-and-forth battle with both teams taking early shots. There were opportunities for both sides, but turnovers stopped the momentum and kept both squads from any promising chances.
A corner kick would provide the needed spark for the Navy and Gold's offense, creating chances in the offensive zone for players to control possession.
In the 36th-minute, Haase would score the eventual game-winner on a straight shot just to the left to get Concordia on the board. She was assisted on the play by Lexi Pettit and Nicole Moore.
With her game-winning goal, Haase became the program's all-time leader in game-winning goals scored in a single-season.
The Golden Bears would go on to notch two more shots to end the first half, holding a slight 7-6 shot advantage.
Coming out of the break, Sioux Falls was anxious to claw their way back from the deficit and turned the offensive pressure on. The Cougars would record four quick shots to keep the CSP defense in the zone.
One more shot with six minutes to play would not be enough and give the Golden Bears a strong victory to start the weekend.
Sioux Falls would hold the final shot advantage 11-8 while forcing the defense to make three saves.
Three players registered a full 90-minute outing on the pitch including, Belle Abruzzo, Clare Snapko and Stella Nielsen.
Potter marked her 13th start of the season in net, making all three saves to bring her season total to 39, while hitting the 100th career save mark.
Tonight's shutout would also be Potter's sixth shutout of the season and the 17th of her collegiate career.
Pettit added two shots in the win, bringing her season total to a career-high 36 shots while notching her fourth team-leading assist.
The Golden Bears will return to action on Sunday to face the Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State at Sea Foam Stadium. Kick-off will take place at 1 p.m. Sunday's game will mark the final regular-season weekend match.
