Buffs Beat Bears 6-1 in Exhibition

Saturday, August 25

Greeley, Colo.

7 p.m.

Colorado

Northern Colorado (Exhibition)

Photo by: CUBuffs.com

August 25, 2007 | Soccer

By: Allie Musso, Assistant SID

Greeley, Colo. - The University of Colorado women's soccer team got their 2007 season off to a good start here Saturday night, topping the Northern Colorado Bears by a score of 6-1 in Greeley.

The game was an opportunity for the Buffs to get playing time for some of the 18 newcomers to coach Bill Hempen's roster before the regular season games get started next week in Denver. While the younger players did show some nerves, Hempen and his squad were happy with how the team came together and battled with the growing UNC program.

"Early on it wasn't a real good game," said head coach Bill Hempen. "We scored a goal off a free kick and then a penalty kick. They were just as good as we were, but we just scored our set pieces."

Freshmen Michaela DeJesus started things off for Colorado as she placed a perfect shot off a free kick in front of the goal, out of the reach of UNC goalkeeper Monique Wells, giving the Buffs a 1-0 lead 13 minutes into the game.

"I was more excited than nervous in the beginning," said DeJesus. "As soon as I got out there it was pretty much like any other game. Once I got going with Nikki (Marshall), who is amazing and so easy to play with, I was able to settle down and play a lot better."

"Michaela played great tonight," said Hempen. "She scored the first goal on a free kick and let me tell you, David Beckham's got nothing on her."

In the 22nd minute, junior veteran Alex Cousins gave the Buffs a 2-0 lead off of a penalty kick. Cousins' goal seemed to be the turning point for the Buffaloes as junior Nikki Keller followed with a goal of her own just under four minutes later.  Sophomore Nikki Marshall sent a pass in front of the goal and Keller beat the keeper to the left and put the Buffs ahead 3-0.

"Overall I think we played really good tonight," said Cousins. "Team dynamics come with experience but everyone was working really hard and it all strung together in the end."

UNC got on the board late in the first half when Jessica Zimmerman headed the ball past CU keeper Kara Linder off a corner kick by Brittani Knott.

Colorado went into the half with a 3-1 advantage and continued to put pressure on the Northern Colorado defense with three more goals coming in the second half.

The Buffs started quickly in the second half as Marshall got her own rebound off a hard shot and put it past the keeper for a 4-1 lead. Marshall would strike again just two minutes later when she took a pass from Cousins and beat the keeper to the left corner. Coming off a summer playing defense for the U-20 national team, Marshall saw action both upfront and in the back for CU.

"Tonight was awesome," said Marshall. "A lot of the freshmen stepped up from practice to the game and it really showed. I'm really excited about how we played and I expect some great things this season."

"Nikki played in front and back for us tonight," said Hempen. "That kid has grown up so much in the last 12 months, it's incredible."

Colorado dominated the stats, outshooting the Bears 19-7, with 13 shots on goal.

The Buffs got their final goal from freshman Kym Lowry in the 81st minute. Fellow freshman Heidi Daugherty crossed a ball from the outside and Lowry buried it in the back of the net, putting CU ahead 6-1 over UNC.

The win was a very positive start for the Buffaloes, as every physically healthy newcomer saw playing time and, despite the young line-up, Colorado was able to maintain their composure throughout the game and shut down the UNC offense.

"The back line consisted of three freshmen and a sophomore," said Hempen. "You could tell that the freshman weren't even breathing in the beginning, but once we got a goal or two they were able to breathe because they knew that they could make a mistake since we had a bit of a cushion. They played a lot better once the fear was gone."

The Buffs will take the win and continue to work on some areas that still need some improvement in order to be ready for the season opener. Colorado has a week before they kick off the regular season with a game against Denver on Friday, Aug. 31 at 4:30 p.m. in Denver. The Buffs will open the home slate on Thursday, Sept. 6 against Utah at 4 p.m. at Prentup Field.

Scoring Summary:
1. 13:17    CU    DEJESUS, Michaela (unassisted)
2. 22:08    CU    COUSINS, Alex (Penalty kick)
3. 25:44    CU    Keller, Nikki (Nikki Marshall)
4. 38:10    UNC ZIMMERMAN, Jessica (Brittani Knott)
5. 50:57    CU    MARSHALL, Nikki (unassisted)
6. 52:14    CU    MARSHALL, Nikki (Alex Cousins)
7. 81:39    CU    LOWRY, Kym (Heidi Daugherty)