Sunday, September 20
Boulder, Colo.
12:00 PM
Colorado
6-2-1
3
vs
0
Villanova
1-8-0
1
2
F
Villanova
0
0
0
Colorado
1
2
3
Photo by: CUBuffs.com
Soccer Blanks Villanova, 3-0
September 20, 2015 | Soccer
BOULDER – The University of Colorado women's soccer team closed out its non-conference schedule with a win on Sunday, shutting out Villanova 3-0 at Prentup Field.
The Buffaloes were aggressive from the start and capitalized early when junior Brie Hooks scored at the 5:09 mark. Villanova turned the ball over about 25 yards out from its own goal and junior Danica Evans played a through ball to Hooks, The Wildcats' goalkeeper Emily Harris came off her line, making the save on Hooks' first shot, but wasn't able to secure the ball. Hooks followed the rebound, made a quick move and found the back of the net to tally her team-leading fourth goal. For Evans, it was her third assist this year and the Buffs' earliest goal they have scored this season.
"I think as a whole we definitely had a lot of energy," said Evans. "It started from the minute we got into the locker room to the minute the whistle blew. The finish was great. We worked so hard at practice this week with breaking the line and that's how all three of our goals happened so it was good."
The Buffs are now 6-2-1 overall and a stellar 5-1 at home. Villanova drops to 1-8-0 on the season.
Colorado was knocking on the doorstep again just five minutes later as Evans and Hooks reeled off a series of shots and kept the Villanova defense on its heels, but the Wildcats were able to keep CU from scoring again before halftime. In the 11th minute, Evans tried a bicycle kick that bounced over the cross bar and moments later she put a shot on frame, but Harris pushed the ball away and the defense cleared it. Hooks had another opportunity in the 14th minute, sending her shot off the left post. Evans was in position to get a touch on the rebound, but the ball went wide left.
"We were maybe a little unfortunate to not get the second one in the first half, but we talked about, 'hey if we get one early in the second half' and we got one ten minutes into the second half so that kind of killed the game off," said Colorado head coach Danny Sanchez. "A lot of credit to Villanova, it's tough to come out and play Denver (on Friday) and us in a single weekend, at altitude, when it's warm. Credit to them, they kept battling to the end, but to be fair to our group, we battled to the end as well. We got every healthy player into the game and I thought they all contributed."
After halftime and the Buffs leading 1-0, Evans, who led the team with four shots on Sunday, was finally able to break through in the 55th minute. Senior Madi Krauser took a touch, the ball bounced and Evans was out in front to put her head on it and then took a shot from the top of the circle, drilling it into the back, left corner.
The Buffaloes outshot the Wildcats 13-6 and the CU backline played a solid 90 minutes, only allowing two shots on goal.
CU goalkeeper Kate Scheele made a crucial save in the 72nd minute to keep the shutout intact. Villanova's Reanna Marino sent a shot on frame and forced Scheele to make a diving stop. Scheele was able to push the ball away as she recorded her third shutout of the season.
With a 2-0 lead late in the match, Colorado's attack was not quite done. Sophomore Brittney Stark added the third and final goal in the 77th minute. This time, senior Emily Paxton connected with Stark who found an opening in the left corner to score her second of the season. Paxton now has two assists in 2015, tying a single-season career-high mark.
"We had to get a win," Sanchez said. "We didn't want to overstate it, but we had to get a win because we know the next eleven games are going to be tough whether they're home or away. It was important for us to get a win first of all, but also to show some good things and to play well. I thought we did that for the majority of the game."
The Buffs open Pac-12 play next weekend, hosting the California Bears, who were ranked No. 13 in the latest coaches' poll. The match is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 27 at 1 p.m. MDT and will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks.
The Buffaloes were aggressive from the start and capitalized early when junior Brie Hooks scored at the 5:09 mark. Villanova turned the ball over about 25 yards out from its own goal and junior Danica Evans played a through ball to Hooks, The Wildcats' goalkeeper Emily Harris came off her line, making the save on Hooks' first shot, but wasn't able to secure the ball. Hooks followed the rebound, made a quick move and found the back of the net to tally her team-leading fourth goal. For Evans, it was her third assist this year and the Buffs' earliest goal they have scored this season.
"I think as a whole we definitely had a lot of energy," said Evans. "It started from the minute we got into the locker room to the minute the whistle blew. The finish was great. We worked so hard at practice this week with breaking the line and that's how all three of our goals happened so it was good."
The Buffs are now 6-2-1 overall and a stellar 5-1 at home. Villanova drops to 1-8-0 on the season.
Colorado was knocking on the doorstep again just five minutes later as Evans and Hooks reeled off a series of shots and kept the Villanova defense on its heels, but the Wildcats were able to keep CU from scoring again before halftime. In the 11th minute, Evans tried a bicycle kick that bounced over the cross bar and moments later she put a shot on frame, but Harris pushed the ball away and the defense cleared it. Hooks had another opportunity in the 14th minute, sending her shot off the left post. Evans was in position to get a touch on the rebound, but the ball went wide left.
"We were maybe a little unfortunate to not get the second one in the first half, but we talked about, 'hey if we get one early in the second half' and we got one ten minutes into the second half so that kind of killed the game off," said Colorado head coach Danny Sanchez. "A lot of credit to Villanova, it's tough to come out and play Denver (on Friday) and us in a single weekend, at altitude, when it's warm. Credit to them, they kept battling to the end, but to be fair to our group, we battled to the end as well. We got every healthy player into the game and I thought they all contributed."
After halftime and the Buffs leading 1-0, Evans, who led the team with four shots on Sunday, was finally able to break through in the 55th minute. Senior Madi Krauser took a touch, the ball bounced and Evans was out in front to put her head on it and then took a shot from the top of the circle, drilling it into the back, left corner.
The Buffaloes outshot the Wildcats 13-6 and the CU backline played a solid 90 minutes, only allowing two shots on goal.
CU goalkeeper Kate Scheele made a crucial save in the 72nd minute to keep the shutout intact. Villanova's Reanna Marino sent a shot on frame and forced Scheele to make a diving stop. Scheele was able to push the ball away as she recorded her third shutout of the season.
With a 2-0 lead late in the match, Colorado's attack was not quite done. Sophomore Brittney Stark added the third and final goal in the 77th minute. This time, senior Emily Paxton connected with Stark who found an opening in the left corner to score her second of the season. Paxton now has two assists in 2015, tying a single-season career-high mark.
"We had to get a win," Sanchez said. "We didn't want to overstate it, but we had to get a win because we know the next eleven games are going to be tough whether they're home or away. It was important for us to get a win first of all, but also to show some good things and to play well. I thought we did that for the majority of the game."
The Buffs open Pac-12 play next weekend, hosting the California Bears, who were ranked No. 13 in the latest coaches' poll. The match is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 27 at 1 p.m. MDT and will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks.
Team Stats
VU
COLO
Goals
0
3
Shots
6
13
Shots on Goal
2
7
Saves
4
2
Corners
2
1
Fouls
10
12
Scoring Plays
Hooks, Brie (4)
Assisted By: Evans, Danica
dribbled around a diving keeper. Sent i
5:09
Evans, Danica (3)
Assisted By: Krauser, Madison
Great touch by 7 over the keeper rockete
54:42
Stark, Brittney (2)
Assisted By: Paxton, Emily
GOAL by COLO Stark, Brittney, Assist by Paxton, Emily, goal number 2 for season.
76:08
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
4
SOG
2
Goals
1
Assists
1
Shots
3
SOG
2
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Players Mentioned
F
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