ST. LOUIS, MO – After a midweek match that left the Principia Women's Soccer team worse for wear, they traveled to the World Wide Technology Soccer Park to face a rejuvenated Webster University. Playing through discomfort and knocks, Principia's women fought hard with a disciplined shape and a collective defensive will. Webster walked away the victors, but scoring goals did not come easy.
The Gorloks got only one goal through the first 40 minutes of the game, as the Panthers refused to give Webster any space inside the box. The second goal came with a long range shot just before halftime. Two more very long range shots and one flicked ball inside the box would give Webster their three second-half goals, but the Panthers did well to limit the home team's chances in dangerous, scoring areas. The Gorloks settled for long shots much of the game, opting to go over the Panthers defense, rather than through it.
"We knew it was going to be a grind," said coach Samuel Thomas after the game. "With the injuries we are carrying at the moment, we really set ourselves up to limit their dangerous chances from close range, and we did a very good job at accomplishing that goal for the full 90 minutes. Webster is a very good team and just got several players back from injury themselves, so they were itching to go. It took a lot of heart from our group to work so hard through knocks and with a limited bench. I'm proud of them for the effort they poured into the game and the discipline they showed."
Up Next: The Panthers are back in action on Tuesday to host Fontbonne University for an evening kickoff at 6:00 pm.
