Coming off a thrilling come-from-behind victory over crosstown rival University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO), the Creighton women’s soccer team had some momentum going into their Senior Day match against the South Dakota Coyotes on Sunday, Sept. 14, at Morrison Stadium.
The Bluejays had a record of 2-4-1 going into the match, including a road victory over the Kansas City Roos and a draw against No.18 Arkansas at Morrison Stadium. Meanwhile, the Coyotes came into Omaha with a solid 4-1-3 record and had not lost a match since Aug. 21.
The Bluejays did not hesitate to put pressure on the Coyote defense, but their first five shots of the match were unsuccessful. However, sophomore University of Pittsburgh transfer Olivia Duray put the Bluejays on the board in the 26th minute when she recovered a header from senior forward Ariana Mondiri that had been deflected and put it in the goal, making the score 1-0. This was Duray’s first goal of her Creighton career.
The Bluejays would then take two more shots in the first half in an effort to extend their lead before halftime. First, junior midfielder Clara Kulik took a deep shot in the 29th minute that went over the top. Second, sophomore forward Anna Bragg took a shot early in the 38th minute that was saved by the South Dakota goalkeeper. But the score stood 1-0 at the half.
“We said at halftime about the importance of getting that second goal,” Head Coach Jimmy Walker said. “We talked a little bit at halftime to the team about moving it quick up midfield.”
The Bluejays did not waste time getting things rolling in the second half. Sophomore forward Mallory Connealy headed senior defender Ella Offer’s pass to Mondiri, who scored a goal on the first shot of the second half in the 47th minute, giving the Bluejays a quick 2-0 advantage.
The Bluejays would then face a scoring drought, failing on six consecutive shots. But Creighton took control of the match when Bragg capitalized on a pass from senior forward Brynn Gardner in the 80th minute and scored her first goal of the season, giving the Bluejays a comfortable 3-0 lead.
Even with a solid lead, the Bluejays remained hungry. Creighton netted an exclamation point goal in the 89th minute when freshman defender Kennedy Moore took a pass from freshman forward Sarah Hyde and scored her first collegiate goal, making the score 4-0 late in the match.
Neither team took a shot after this goal, and the match ended as a 4-0 victory for the Bluejays.
Creighton’s defense gave South Dakota trouble all match, and the Coyotes were unable to fire a shot throughout the full 90 minutes. Sunday’s match also marked the first time Creighton scored four goals while also shutting out their opponent since Oct. 16, 2016, against Seton Hall at Morrison Stadium.
“I just think we needed a game where we all work together. We put a full 90 together, shutout. And did it for our seniors, senior day today,” Bragg said. “I’m proud of us … We all worked together really well today.”
Creighton’s attack on the Coyotes was balanced, with four different Bluejays scoring a goal.
“It feels great, I’m proud of everyone today, what a performance from everyone,” Bragg said. “We talked about it. We don’t have to rely on just one person, everybody on this team works so hard and everyone wants to score and you saw that today.”
Sunday’s match was Creighton’s final non-conference battle of the regular season.
“This was our last dress rehearsal going into conference play. We needed to see a complete performance and you know, get all the little details dialed in, get the defending right, get the attacking right, put a full 90 together,” Walker said. “That was the challenge we gave them and they’ve done everything spot on today from start to finish.”
Creighton’s 11 seniors were recognized for their dedication to the program before the match. The players were accompanied by their parents and given a framed jersey.
“I think that’s a good moment for all the seniors because we have a lot of seniors and graduate students,” Mondiri said. “It meant a lot to almost all the lineup team because you have a lot of seniors. So it was good for the team”.
Sunday’s victory improved Creighton’s record to 3-4-1 on the season. The Bluejays are back in action tomorrow against the No. 16 Georgetown Hoyas at Morrison Stadium for their first Big East battle of the season. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.