After a tough conference loss to Benedictine College and dropping from No. 17 to No. 22 in the NAIA Coaches’ Top 25 Poll, the Baker University women’s soccer team was able to bounce back quickly with a road win Tuesday against Columbia College.
It was homecoming for Benedictine when Baker showed up Saturday in Atchison to take on one of its biggest rivals in the Heart of America Athletic Conference.
Head coach Nate Houser thinks the atmosphere in the BC Soccer Complex had a hand in the game’s result.
“Emotion plays a bigger role in game situations than tactics does,” Houser said. “Had that been a homecoming game at our place, that emotion would have swung our way. I’m not going to fault anybody for having fans come out and cheer, but athletes always respond to that. Teams play better when they have a crowd watching and cheering them on.”
Although they started out strong and maintained a high level of intensity throughout the 90 minutes of play, the Wildcats were unable to defeat the Ravens and fell 3-2 in the battle.
Baker also lost one of its starting defenders, sophomore Lesley Johnson, due to an injury, which occurred during the action. While there is a possibility Johnson may be out for the season, Houser thinks his team has adjusted well to the necessary changes made in spite of the misfortune.
Senior Finola Corley picked up the first goal in the eighth minute of the game to give the ‘Cats an early lead. That would soon turn into a 1-1 tie when Benedictine’s Liz Enna headed the ball into the back of the net past sophomore goalkeeper Rachel Theobald in the 10th minute.
Baker snatched the lead right back in the 38th minute as senior Jordan Dolbin beat the Ravens’ defense and goalkeeper Ashley Holland.
Enna and Bethany Smith put the game away for Benedictine with goals scored in the in the 50th and 57th minutes, respectively, to give Baker its second straight conference loss.
There is a possibility that Baker may have a chance for redemption against the Ravens in the early rounds of the playoffs, and Houser is confident in the team’s chances.
“We’ve seen the show. Our experience (in the playoffs) over the last two seasons will come into play as we face teams who haven’t been there,” Houser said. “I think Saturday we took (Benedictine’s) best punch. I think that’s the best they can play, and if it is, I like our chances. I would love a second bite at the apple.”
The Wildcats were able to bounce back and snap their two-game losing streak as well as ending Columbia College’s six-game winning streak Tuesday in Columbia with a 3-1 defeat over the Cougars.
Despite the muddy mess of a field they were playing on because of rainy conditions earlier in the day, Houser felt the ‘Cats played smart and were able to follow a game plan which led them to victory in their first ever game against Columbia.
“Our goal is to complete at least three passes within a possession, and when we’re able to do that, teams have a problem,” Houser said. “It was good to be able to get back to that on Tuesday night and get the win.”
Dolbin scored her eighth goal of the season and the only goal of the first half in the 29th minute of the game to put Baker up 1-0.
The Cougars were left without a rebuttal until the 63rd minute when Amanda Caldwell placed the ball into the top corner of the goal, just past Theobald’s reach to tie the ball game.
Dolbin responded with the winning goal in the 77th minute. Shortly after, freshman Shalynn Eldredge-McMillan put the game out of reach with a goal of her own in the 86th minute to successfully shut Columbia down.
Theobald recorded seven saves in between the pipes against Columbia, and made only one save during the Benedictine game. She has made a total of 64 saves on the season.
Corley and Dolbin, the only two seniors on the team, will be honored in Baker’s last home game of the regular season against Culver-Stockton College at 5 p.m. Saturday at Liston Stadium.
