ELSAH, IL – The Principia Women's Soccer team opened their 2023 season at home on Friday evening against Augustana College. The Panthers put together a strong effort as they staved off a strong Vikings attack for the vast majority of the game. A late Augustana goal in the 85th minute handed Principia a 1-0 loss, but the team had a lot of positives to take away.
Goalkeeper
Christin Walls shined in her first official game in a Principia uniform as she made many crucial saves and broke up several dangerous passes in the box. The Panthers back line of
Olivia Scott,
Shayla Kelley, and
Amarachi Ejimadu had a great game clogging shooting lanes and making multiple shot-stopping blocks. Principia also played with a lot of pace with the Panthers midfielders all causing problems for the Augustana defense. Overall, the team's collective work-rate was the biggest standout as many individuals gave 100% of themselves on the pitch.
Coach Thomas was proud of the effort, saying, "I'm thrilled with how fast this group has come together and the willingness with which they work hard for each other. Our execution of the game plan today was excellent. We were really hard for them to break down and chose good moments to try to counter. Augustana is a strong team that are organized, have depth, and are a good measuring stick for the stronger teams in our conference. They gave us a really good game tonight and made us better."
Up Next: The Panthers have a very quick turnaround as they host Maryville College (TN) on Saturday at 5:00 pm. Come support the team in another big early-season test!
Hear more comments from Coach Thomas after the game:
