Gonzaga flexed its NCAA Division I muscles Sunday afternoon in Spokane, rolling to a 10-0 victory over Whitman. It was the season opener for the Missionaries, while the Bulldogs improved to 1-2 on the season.
"Gonzaga is a high quality Division I team," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "They were basically just bigger, stronger and faster, and there wasn't a whole lot we could do to stop them."
Gonzaga, which had not scored in losing its first two games to Division I opponents, lit up the Missionaries for six goals in the first half.
"Our players learned quite a bit about themselves, both individually and as a team," Shields said. "We're young and we've got a ways to go to build a team that can play together. Right now, we're still playing as individuals. But we still have plenty of time to get things moving in the right direction before our first conference game."
Walla Walla Community College scored off a penalty kick with three minutes left to play to hand the Whitman women's soccer team a 2-1 exhibition loss Monday afternoon on Ankeny Field. The game will not count in the season totals for either team.
WWCC opened the scoring in the 39th minute of play when Alisa Lathom assisted Braindy Johnson for the lone goal of the first half. Both Johnson and Latham played prep soccer for Wa-Hi.
Whitman countered in the 72nd minute when Sara Weihmann, a freshman from West Linn, Ore., scored with an assist from senior captain Corinne Schuler. WWCC's Christy Messinger then nailed the winning goal in the closing minutes.
"WWCC is a very good team this year and we are a very young team," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "It was unfortunate to lose because the game itself was very even. WWCC really dominated the first half in terms of ball possession, and we came out in the second half and turned the tables."
Whitman played without injured starters Shannon O'Neill and Megan Mackenzie, as well as freshman goalkeeper Leanne Alaman. O'Neill and Alaman are both out for the season with knee injuries, while Mackenzie is out indefinitely with a separated shoulder. "Those were huge losses, to see two starters injured before the season even got under way," Shields said.
"The lack of depth off the bench hurt us today," Shields added. "But it was good for our team to get out there in the flow of the game for 90 minutes. The level of play on our side was much better today, and that is really the goal of the preseason for us."
Whitman, which is 0-1, travels to Ellensburg this Saturday for one last preseason game against NCAA Division II Central Washington University. The Missionaries begin Northwest Conference play the following week.
Central Washington University, an NCAA Div. II school, posted its school-record fifth consecutive shutout in handing the Whitman women's soccer team a 5-0 non-conference loss Saturday in Ellensburg, Wash. The Wildcats, now 5-1 on the season, haven't been scored upon in their last 530 minutes of play.
Whitman, which begins Northwest Conference play this Wednesday at Whitworth, completed its short non-conference schedule with an 0-2 record. The Missionaries lost earlier at NCAA Div. I Gonzaga University.
"We knew we had our work cut out for us in going to Central Washington," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "We actually played pretty well, but Central is a very strong, very fast and very physical, Division II team. They are at the top of their conference right now, and they probably will be nationally ranked within the very near future."
Even though the score and shots on goal in Saturday's game were one-sided, Shields said, "We felt we played well in controlling certain part of the field. We put together some good combinations against a very good team, and we definitely took a step up in the level of our play."
As Shields made substitutions during the game, players left the field feeling good about their play, he said. "A lot of players came off saying, `Geez, coach, we feel good about the way this game is going.'"
Shields said he and his players are looking forward to start of conference play. "We're not picked to finish at the top of the league, but we feel we can definitely compete at our level and turn some heads. We've got three games this week. We don't know how many of those we're going to get, but we're going to make teams pay attention."
The Whitworth women scored five times off corner kicks and handed the visiting Missionaries a 7-0 Northwest Conference loss Wednesday afternoon in Spokane. It was the conference opener for both schools.
Whitworth, which is ranked No. 10 in this week's NCAA D-III West Region poll, improved to 3-1-1 on the season. Whitman dropped to 0-3-0.
"The corner kicks are what really hurt us," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "They really hammered us in that area. Other than the corner kicks, we played pretty well defensively. When we were on them one-on-one, it wasn't a problem."
The Missionaries also had trouble adjusting to Whitworth's new field. "It was hard and fast, and it took us most of the first half to get a feel for how the ball was rolling," Shields said.
With a chilling rain falling at times, the Pirates bolted to a 4-0 halftime lead, scoring three of its first goals off corner kicks. "Whitworth is a very solid team," Shields said. "We had a few scoring opportunities of our own, but they basically just took it to us."
Whitman, which already has lost one of its top offensive players (Shannon O'Neill) for the season due to injury, played Wednesday without starting defender Meghan Bowen, who was out with an ankle sprain. "Megan is strong and fast, and we missed her today," Shields said. "We hope to have her back this weekend, but we didn't want to bring her back too early and risk losing her for a longer period. Our roster is thin enough as it is."
Senior captain Heather Groshong had a good game in anchoring Whitman's defense, Shields said.
Searching for its first victory of the season, the Whitman women's soccer team fell just a little short at Pacific University Saturday afternoon, losing 1-0. The Boxers are now 2-2-1 on the season and 1-1 in the Northwest Conference, while the Missionaries remain winless in four contests. Whitman is 0-2 in conference action.
Pacific's Malia DeVilliers notched the game-winning goal in the 70th minute, scoring on a shot that deflected off Whitman defender Heather Groshong's foot on its way into the goal. The deflection was "one of those high bloopers that just went up and over the keeper's head," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "It was just one of those things."
Other than that one goal, Shields added, "it was a back and forth game between two evenly matched teams. Our girls never let up. We don't have a lot of experience or numbers, but we stepped up our level of play again."
Both teams had missed opportunities in the game. Whitman misfired on all three of its shots on goal, while the Boxers came up short on 13 of 14 shots.
Clare Creighton recorded four saves in goal for the Missionaries. Meghan Bowen was back in the starting lineup for the Missionaries after having missed the conference opener at Whitworth with an ankle sprain.
Karli Holub scored two goals and added an assist, breaking George Fox school records for goals and points, as the Bruins pinned a 5-0 Northwest Conference loss on Whitman Sunday afternoon in Newberg, Ore. George Fox improved to 3-0 in conference, 5-2 overall, while the young Missionaries dropped to 0-3 and 0-5.
"Today was just one of those difficult days," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "We did some good things individually, but as a team we didn't play very well. Our passes aren't in sync, and we gave up some easy goals due to lack of communication and teamwork."
Leading just 2-0 at intermission, George Fox broke the game open when Holub scored both of her goals in the first nine minutes of the second half.
"Compared to Saturday's game at Pacific, our play was definitely on the flat side today," Shields said. "We don't have the numbers this year to rest anyone, so our players wore down a little bit today."
After playing its first five games on the road, Whitman hosts its next four games, all against conference foes. Linfield comes to town this Saturday, Sept. 30, followed by Willamette on Sunday. Both women's games will start at noon on Ankeny Field. "We're looking forward to playing at home," Shields said. "It will be interesting to see how we react on our home field."
The Linfield women scored in the third minute of play, added two more goals over the next 25 minutes, and then coasted to a 3-0 Northwest Conference victory over Whitman on a rainy Saturday afternoon on Ankeny Field.
The Wildcats, who evened their NWC record at 2-2, are 3-4-1 on the season. Whitman's long season continued as the young Missionaries dropped to 0-4 in conference, 0-6 on the season.
Sara Williams scored Linfield's first goal when the Missionaries misplayed a defensive pass deep in their end of the field. Lauren Millhollin, assisted by Lovisa Dvorak, scored at the 16:20 mark to extend the Wildcat lead to 2-0. Dvorak completed the scoring with an unassisted goal in the 28th minute of play.
"This is the best Linfield team I've seen in quite awhile," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "Millhollin and Dvorak dominated the play up front."
Jessica Gabbert posted the shutout in goal for the Wildcats, collecting three saves on five Missionary shots. A pair of freshmen, Clare Creighton and Rena Parcells, split the keeper duties for Whitman. Creighton had three saves in the first half, with Parcells adding three more in the second half.
"Once we settled down and got into the game mentally, we didn't play too badly," Shields added. "After the first three goals and first 30 minutes, we played them even the rest of the way."
The Willamette women's soccer team stayed unbeaten on the season with a 6-1 Northwest Conference victory over Whitman Sunday afternoon on Ankeny Field. Willamette remains atop the conference standings with a 5-0 record and is 9-0-1 overall. Whitman is winless in seven games this season.
The Bearcats jumped to an early lead, scoring in the fourth and sixth minutes of play, and led 5-0 at the half.
"After those early scores, we seemed to lose our mental focus as a team," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "We've been struggling this year, and getting behind early like that was just too much mentally for the team to handle."
After Shields settled his squad at halftime, the Missionaries responded by playing the best team in the conference to a standstill in the second period. "We talked at halftime a lot about believing in ourselves and playing up to our ability," Shields said.
Willamette's Amy Morris scored her third goal of the afternoon early in the second half, but Whitman freshman Kaitlin Varady countered with her first collegiate goal in the 68th minute. Jana Seaman had the assist on Varady's goal.
Of more importance than avoiding the shutout, Shields said, was the "statement we made in the second half by playing them even."
Whitman's second-half goalkeeper, freshman Rena Parcells, stood out with four key saves. "Rena played really well in the second half, and the team seemed to respond to her effort with enthusiasm," Shields said.
Pacific Lutheran freshman Maja Pederson completed a long run up field with a 25-yard scoring shot to give the visiting Lutes a 1-0 Northwest Conference victory over Whitman Saturday afternoon on Ankeny Field.
PLU improved to 1-5 in NWC play and 2-9 overall. Whitman dropped to 0-6 in conference and 0-8 on the season.
The game's only goal came in the 56th minute of play. Alison Brennan got the assist, feeding a long pass to Pederson near the midfield stripe. With a defender on her shoulder, Pederson raced to the 25-yard mark before launching a missle off the far post and into the net.
"It was a great run and even greater shot," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "It was the kind of shot you want the other team to take -- at least until they make it. It had to be a perfect shot to beat our keeper, and it was perfect. She just hammered it. If you have to lose a game 1-0, it's best to lose it on a shot like that."
The Lutes finished with a 20-17 advantage in shots on goal. PLU's senior goalkeeper, Gloria Cefali, got the shutout and was credited with seven saves. Whitman's freshman keeper, Rena Parcells, who only recently joined the team, collected 12 saves.
"It was an evenly played game," Shields said. "We played extremely well for the first 70 minutes or so. After that, we ran out of gas a little bit and didn't put as much pressure on them. We were missing a few players today, which took its toll, and our players are coming off mid-term exams this past week. We just ran out of energy."
Despite Whitman's inability to rally at the end, Shields said, "this was by far our best game of the season. We had a number of awesome chances to score, especially in the first half. Even after they scored, we had some great opportunites over the next five to eight minutes. We came right back at them."
One missed opportunity to tie the game at 1-1 came during a melee in front on the PLU goal. "Megan Mackenzie had the ball inside the 6-yard box and got off a hard shot as she turned," Shields said. "Unfortunately for us, the keeper and a defender were right there."
The Whitman women host the University of Puget Sound at noon Sunday on Ankeny Field. The PLU women will play at the same time at Whitworth in Spokane.
Dusty Marcell scored three goals in the first 26 minutes of play to power the Puget Sound women to a 6-0 Northwest Conference victory at Whitman Sunday afternoon on Ankeny Field.
UPS improved to 6-1 in conference play, 8-1-1 on the season. The Loggers are ranked No. 12 nationally in NCAA Div. III and No. 2 in the West Region.
The young Missionaries, who normally start nine freshmen and sophomores, fell to 0-7 in conference and 0-9 overall.
"Basically, it was just the Dusty Marcell show against us in the first half," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "She made some awesome goals. She hit some bullets."
Marcell, who now has eight goals on the season, was unassisted on two of her scores against Whitman. Brianna Hultgren got the assist on Marcell's first goal.
Hultgren added a goal of her own in the 29th minute, scoring with an assist from Julie Louis. Michelle Moore and Jamie Sato added second-half goals for UPS to complete the scoring.
Shields said Whitman continued its pattern of playing its poorest games on Sunday. "Part of the problem is that we don't have a very deep or experienced roster," he said. "We played a tough game on Saturday, losing 1-0, so our starters played a lot, longer than normal. Our tank was totally empty today. UPS, on the other hand, had an easy game against Whitworth on Saturday, beating them 3-0 and outshooting them 27-3."
Karen Ecklebe started in goal for the Loggers Sunday and played all but the final 10 minutes when she gave way to Abbie Wold.
Rena Parcells, a freshman, played keeper in the first half for the Missionaries, collecting four saves. Kirstin Sandvik, another freshman, handled the second-half goalie chores for the Missionaries.
UPS outshot Whitman 18-4 and had a 7-0 edge in corner kicks.
Two sophomores who played well for the Missionaries were Erin Whittemore and Megan Mackenzie, Shields said. "Erin came in as marking back and played really well. Megan also had a very solid game at center midfield."
Whitman embarks on the second half of its conference schedule when it travels to Willamette and Linfield next weekend. "My biggest goal at this point is to make sure we end the season on a positive note," Shield said. "We've had a lot of goals scored against us the first time through. What we want to do is cut that down to just a few, and start scoring a few goals of our own each game."
One week after suffering its first defeat of the season, the nationally-ranked Willamette women's soccer team pinned a 5-0 Northwest Conference (NWC) loss on Whitman Saturday afternoon in Salem, Ore.
The Bearcats, ranked No. 5 in the latest NCAA Div. III poll, improved to 11-1-1 on the season and 7-1 in the NWC. Willamette, in search of its eighth consecutive NWC title, began the week tied for first with Puget Sound and George Fox.
The Missionaries, who field a roster dominated by freshmen and sophomores, dropped to 0-8 in conference and 0-10 overall.
Willamette jumped in front early in Saturday's game, scoring three times in the first 12 minutes of play.
"We weren't awake to start the game," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "Once we got ourselves into the game, it was a pretty decent battle the rest of the way."
The Bearcats led 3-0 at halftime and didn't add their fifth goal in the second half until the final minute of play.
"Willamette had the majority of play in the first half," Shields said. "That changed in the second half, when we were in their end of the field quite a bit and generated quite a few opportunities on goal. Compared to the first time we played them earlier in the season, we picked up our offense and got in their faces a little bit. We felt good about that, and how we played after that first 12 minutes."
Rena Parcells, Whitman's freshman goalkeeper, faced 23 Willamette shots and collected seven saves.
With freshman Kaitlin Varady and sophomore Megan Mackenzie scoring second-half goals, the Whitman women's soccer team rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit and battled Linfield to a 2-2 overtime tie Sunday afternoon in McMinnville, Ore.
"It was great game for us in that we fought back twice to tie the score," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "Even when we fell behind, we had the confidence to come back and pull even."
The two teams, both of which played on Saturday, battled to standstill in the scoreless 30-minute overtime. "Our players gave it everything they had, mentally and physically," Shields said. "It was their second game in two days, and after going an extra 30 minutes, they had nothing left. They basically crawled off the field."
The Wildcats, in fourth place in the Northwest Conference standings, ended their weekend with a 4-3-2 conference mark and 5-5-3 season record. Whitman is 0-8-1 in NWC games and 0-10-1 overall.
Linfield jumped in front with a goal in the 37th minute of the first half. Whitman's Varady, scoring her second goal of the season, evened the count at 1-1 with a goal just four minutes into the second half. Sara Weihmann, another Missionary freshman, had the assist.
The Wildcats regained the lead with their second goal of the game in the 64th minute of play. But Whitman's Mackenzie, assisted by junior Liz Davis, forced overtime when she scored with seven minutes left in regulation.
Freshman Rena Parcells went the distance in goal for the Missionaries, recording six saves against 17 Linfield shots.
The young Missionaries hope to continue their late-season improvement when they host Whitworth at 2 p.m. Wednesday on Ankeny Field. "If we can combine the kind of mental and physical intensity we had today against Linfield with good passing and execution, there's no reason why we shouldn't come away with a win against Whitworth," Shields said.
The Whitman women's soccer team gave George Fox all it could handle for the first 45 minutes of play Saturday afternoon on Ankeny Field, but the the Bruins busted loose in the second half for a 5-1 Northwest Conference victory.
George Fox, which began the weekend trailing Puget Sound and Willamette by a single game for first place in the NWC, improved its record to 9-2 in conference and 11-4 on the season. The young Missionaries, who were tied 1-1 with George Fox at halftime, dropped to 0-10-1 in conference and 0-12-1 overa.
The Bruins grabbed a 1-0 lead Saturday when senior Karli Holub, the school's all-time scoring leader, booted her 14th goal of the season in the 11 minute of play. The goal was unassisted.
Whitman senior Heather Groshong evened the score at 1-1 with a goal at the 28:51 mark of the first half. Freshman Sara Weihmann got the assist.
"I thought we played very well in the first half," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "George Fox is a very good team, with very goal scorers, and we stayed right with them. This was a game we could have won, had we played as well in the second half as we did the first half."
The Bruins regained the lead in the first minute of the second half, thanks to an unassisted goal by Anna Carlson. Three more Bruins scored before the half ended as the visitors coasted to victory.
"When George Fox has opportunities to score, they don't miss too many," Shields said. "Our defense was just a little too soft in the second half."
"We're a very young team, but at least we're continuing to see improvement from week to week," Shields added. "We're getting to the point where we're playing very well in the first half of our games. What we're still lacking is the consistency for a full 90 minutes, and part of that is that we don't have a very deep bench. We start to break down when people start getting tired."
Playing in front of its home fans for the last time this season, the never-say-die Whitman women's soccer team came away with a 1-0 shutout -- its first victory of the season -- over a stubborn Pacific University squad Sunday afternoon on Ankeny Field.
Whitman's triumph reversed a 1-0 loss the Missionaries suffered earlier this season at Pacific. With just two road games left on its fall schedule, Whitman raised its record to 1-10-1 in Northwest Conference play and 1-12-1 on the season. Pacific saw its record fall to 3-9 in the NWC and 4-12 overall.
Backed by another big crowd on Family Weekend, the Missionaries showed confidence throughout the contest. "For the first time this season we played well for an entire two halves," Whitman coach Scott Shields said.
Whitman's Liz Davis scored in the 41st minute on a header to give the Missionaries the only goal they would need. Sara Weihmann crossed the ball to Davis in the middle and was credited with her second assist of the weekend.
The Missionaries were outshot 16 to 10 on the scorecard, but Whitman's stifling defense allowed few clean shots on goal. "Credit our defense with controlling the Pacific forwards," Shields said. "Gretchen Wieman, Carrie Beck and Meghan Bowen all played extremely well today."
When the Boxer attackers managed to sneak by the Whitman defense, freshman keeper Rena Parcells closed the door. Parcells had nine saves and stopped at least three certain goals in the second half on shots well above her head.
"Rena was clutch," Shields said. "She stopped absolutely everything today and we needed her in a big way. Coming out in the second half and battling through injury shows how competitive she is."
Parcells injured a shoulder in the first half but played through the pain, recording her first collegiate shutout.
The Missionaries end the season in Tacoma next weekend with games against University of Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran University.
With sophomore Brianna Hultgren scoring all three goals, the University of Puget Sound pulled away from a 1-0 halftime lead and clinched its first-ever women's Northwest Conference soccer title with a 3-0 victory over Whitman Friday afternoon in Tacoma.
Winning its 11th straight came, Puget Sound improved to 12-1 in NWC play with just one regular-season game left on Saturday against Whitworth. The Loggers are 14-1-1 on the season and ranked No. 3 nationally in NCAA DIII.
Whitman, which closes out its season Saturday at Pacific Lutheran, dropped to 1-11-1 in conference and 1-14-1 overall.
Hultgren, who now has 11 goals on the season, got her first one Friday in the fourth minute of play. The assist when to teammate Dusty Marcell, who also has 11 goals this season.
"That first goal was a wake-up call for us, and I was pleased with the way we played the rest of the first half," Whitman coach Scott Shields said. "We actually had some nice combinations of our own and spent some time at their end of the field.
Whitman's defense also held firm for the rest of the first half, but Hultgren completed her hat trick with two more goals in the first 10 minutes of the second half.
"We were a little flat to start the first half, and they threw a new formation at us that we had trouble with," Shield said. "It resulted in a couple of breakaways and their second goal. Our keeper, Rena Parcells, got her hands on both of Puget Sound's second-half goals and she's disappointed she didn't stop them both. She still played a great game."
Parcells, a freshman, collected seven saves in playing the first 72 minutes. She began the weekend with the top saves-per-game average in the conference. Kristin Sandvik, also a freshman, finished in goal and picked up one save.
"You never like to lose, but we were pleased with how we played," Shields said. "Puget Sound is the No. 1 team in the region, and it's in the top five nationally, and we held our own and made it a competitive game."
In its last game of the 2000 fall season, the Whitman College women's soccer team was outscored 4-0 in the second half and lost a 5-0 Northwest Conference decision to Pacific Lutheran Saturday afternoon in Tacoma.
The young Missionaries ended the season 1-14-1 overall, 1-12-1 in the NWC. The Lutes finished 5-13 on the season, 4-10 in conference play.
Although disappointed with the loss, Whitman coach Scott Shields was happy to see his seniors play hard in their final game. "As a coach, the one thing you can ask is for your players to leave it all on the field," Shields said. "Today Corrine Schuler, Heather Groshong and Ali Jones played their hearts out. They all left it on the field."
In the first half, the Lutes grabbed a 1-0 lead when Allison Brennan scored on what Shields called a "beautiful shot." At least three of the PLU's five goals were phenomenal scores, he said, noting that the Lutes were also riding an emotional high in their last game of the season. "PLU played awesome; they were emotional and into the game."
For the Missionaries, looking forward to exciting future is easy. With the loss of only three seniors to graduation, Shields has a solid foundation on which to build. "I'm extremely excited about the future of Whitman women's soccer," Shields said. "We have young players with a lot of playing time already under their belts. And this is a group that gels extremely well as a unit."