Last Thursday, the women’s soccer team played Butler in Indianapolis where the Bluejays lost 3-1, effectively ending their season with a record of 7-10-2.
After a very promising start going 6-2-1 in non-conference games, the team began to deal with lineup changes due to season-ending injuries to key players.
Before Big East play, the team had lost the likes of the then nation’s assist leader senior midfielder Ansley Atkinson, captain of the Jays’ defense junior Jordy Rothwell and attacking option senior Cristina Garriga. Senior winger Juelle Love, a major impact in previous seasons, didn’t see the pitch in 2021 due to an ACL injury.
“We had to get used to playing with girls that maybe didn’t get a lot of minutes, and that was a challenge for us,” junior goalkeeper Keelan Terrell said. “We had to rebuild chemistry with different players… I think we ended up doing an amazing job at that.”
Terrell was one of the bright spots for the Jays this season herself, finishing the season with seven total shutouts. Terrell also set a program record for most consecutive minutes without allowing a goal at 507:38, a streak that spanned across seven games, five of which were shutouts.
The feat was thanks in part to the defensive line in front of Terrell as well, led by Rothwell, junior Gabby Grimaldi and sophomore Peighton Steffen.
The defense set a record of their own during the season, preventing opponents from recording a shot for 155:20 consecutive minutes, including a 110-minute double overtime tie against South Dakota in which the Coyotes didn’t get a single shot off.
Offensively, productivity came mainly by way of sophomore Abigail Santana who led the team in goals and points with eight and 18, respectively.
“As a team this season, we did a really good job of overcoming the adversity that was thrown our way with injuries,” Terrell said. “We were able to overcome that and as a team we showed up to every practice and every game wanting to win.”
Despite the determination of the young squad filling in for the many injured, the Jays failed to get the results they desired in Big East play. Creighton finished the season ninth overall in the conference with a record of 1-8-1.
“I know with this season, we will look back on it and it is going to be a huge development for us,” coach Ross Paule said. “It is going to be something to really build on because we had a great culture and great work ethic throughout.”
The hot start with a mostly healthy team and the ability to work through adversity has only better prepared the young, dynamic team for future seasons and is a sign of things to come for the Jays.