Falcon women's soccer opens optimistically, to mixed results

The Falcon’s Women’s Soccer team has had their ups and downs to start the season, but they’re already proving to be a resilient bunch.

“Through our first 9 games we’ve just had some difficultly putting together the final piece of the puzzle, which is putting the ball in the back of the net. But this clearly hasn’t been because of a lack of effort,” Coach Sean McKuras described.

The Falcons are 3-5-1 through their first 9 games of the season, with 9 more games to go before playoff time begins. With it being the halfway point of the season, coaches and players alike have noticed great strides by the team.

“We’ve improved greatly in our ability to adjust and look for opponents weaknesses as the year has gone on. The team has also shown dedication in coming to practice each and every session looking to get better,” McKuras said.

The Falcons opened up with a big 2-0 victory over Saint Mary’s University to start the season, but then lost a heartbreaker 1-0 to Hamline at home. Since those two games the Falcons have played 6 of their last 7 games on the road, stringing together a 2-4-1 record during this stretch. However, the Falcons host 7 of their next 9 games at home and hope to gain some momentum as the conference season kicks into full gear.

McKuras said, “We’re in a tough part of our season right now, but our goal is to still win our last 9 games and host a playoff game. The girls have been consistent in their training, and then they know the goals will come if they continue to be mentally tough and hold their strong character.”

He also was excited about his team finally getting to host their opponents for a change, saying “We still have a lot of meaningful games remaining with home opportunities to rack up some wins. We’ve enjoyed the support we’ve received so far and hope we can continue to gain fan interest by putting on a good show for our home fans.

Sophomore Abby Soderholm has been leading the charge on offense for the Falcons so far this season, with 5 goals and 1 assist through 9 games. She also has 30 shots on goal and is leading the team with 11 points. On the defensive side Senior Melissa Barnett and Junior goalie Erica Cimochowski have been leaders of their own, shutting down opposing offenses throughout the year. Cimochowski has 35 saves on the year and has only allowed 11 goals.

The Falcons have definitely shown their strengths this season are having a strong cohesive team and having a willingness to work towards the common goal of growing every game. Coach McKuras has also been impressed with “how great a group of young women they’ve been”.

Those women will be looking to put their soccer team over the top in the second half of the season. The team is still looking to at least match last year’s record of 12-6-3 and progress forward as a team. But after losing their last 3 games by only one goal each, optimism is still high on the team.

The Falcons begin their conference home stand by playing UW Whitewater at 5 PM on homecoming Saturday.