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 Tuesday's match at Mount Mary University (MMU) was to be game 10
of a 12-match season. Sadly, due to roster issues, the team has
announced they cannot play their final two matches. A roster that
was once 14 players strong has been reduced over the course of the
season to just seven. Five players lost to season-ending injuries,
and two decided to focus their efforts on academics.
At MMU on Tuesday, LCU started 8 players to match up against a
gracious host squad that also put out 8, even though they had enough
to start the full 11-player squad. Grateful for the concession, LCU
was optimistic about getting a result from a team with whom they had
already battled closely earlier in the season. Despite a promising
surge at the end of both halves that produced the most shots-on-goal
in any game this season, none found the back of the net, leaving LCU
behind in the score 6-0, and winless for the first time in three
seasons.
A bright spot for the game and the season was Goalkeeper Katie Stuva
(FR/Springfield, IL). With 17 saves at Mount Mary, and an overall
saves-per-game average of 17.2, Stuva holds the top spot in the NAIA
for the season. Additionally, she ranks fourth overall in total
saves for the season at 155. Stuva controlled her area well at MMU,
where she managed to knock down several dangerous passes in addition
to her saves and came out strong against a quick and dangerous
attack from Mount Mary.
Utility midfielder Morgan Witzke (FR/Clinton, IL) ran the entire
game, trying to manage the center of the park by herself in the
compromised 3-3-1 formation. Attacking when she could and still
getting back to quell numerous potential attacks from the MMU Blue
Angles, Witzke earned the Red Lions best opportunity to score when
she was taken down in the box and awarded a penalty kick in the 14th
minute. The bench urged centerback Rebecca Laker (JR/Hanover Park,
IL) to come forward and take it since she had finished these
opportunities so well in practice. Despite a very well placed ball,
the MMU keeper guessed right and was able to parry it away to
preserve the 3-0 score line.
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Women's Soccer Head Coach Todd Spellman found praise for his team by
saying, "I really couldn't be prouder of our girls, because through
all the adversity of the season we kept our heads up, played all 90
minutes of every game as hard as we were capable and maintained
great character and sportsmanship through it all. In the end, the
stats won't show the kind of success we had, but I feel we laid the
ground work for future seasons by building a team culture around our
core values that we can add more experience and fitness to as we
recruit."
LCU’s School of Undergraduate Studies is a member of the National
Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the National
Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). Founded in Lincoln,
Illinois, in 1944, Lincoln Christian University’s three schools –
the School of Undergraduate Studies, the Hargrove School of Adult &
Graduate Studies and the Seminary – share a mission to nurture and
equip Christians with a Biblical worldview to serve and lead in the
church and the world. For more information about the Red Lions visit
LincolnChristian.edu/athletics.
[Todd Spellman, Lincoln Christian
University]
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