After numerous close finishes and two tie games within the last five matchups Marshall women’s soccer team left no doubt against Southern Miss (3-9-3, 0-5-1 C-USA) Sunday, as The Herd (3-8-3, 1-3-2 C-USA)captured its first Conference USA victory of the 2011 season and delivered a 2-0 defeat to the Golden Eagles at Sam Hood Field.
Marshall came out of the gates with high intensity and electricity in its footsteps, as MU posted 24 shots in the first half. Senior Angela DeSumma fired eight alone, and connected on a penalty kick that gave The Herd its first goal of the game.
MU continued to keep the Golden Eagles in its own end of the field in the second half, tallying an additional nine shots in period two. Despite the Thundering Herd’s several attempts, its second goal of the competition came on a Casey Walsh’s cross pass that happened to hit the inside of the far post, giving Marshall the two-nil advantage, and the security it would need to close out Southern Miss.
The Herd owned all stat categories in Sunday’s matinee, especially in shots fired. Marshall posted 33 shots, compared to USM’s 12. Additionally The Herd posted 16 shots-on-goal, opposed to Southern Miss’s six. Lastly, MU defeated the Golden Eagles in corners six to four.
Several team members stuck out individually for The Herd as DeSumma finished with nine shots, made up of six on goal. Megan Tabler added four shots, composed of three on goal, along with Casey Walsh, who also tallied four shots. Robin Waskowski totaled three shots, while five other Marshall players rattled two shots each.
Head Coach Kevin Long was happy to witness the execution his squad showed throughout today’s performance. “It’s been a long time coming for our first Conference USA win, however, after tying with UCF Friday night our girls weren’t settled. We wanted to come out today attacking, showcasing our ability to score. We stuck with our game plan throughout the entire match and displayed exceptional offense, while maintaining solid defense. It shows that if our squad can continue to pressure on offense, it makes our defense stronger.”
Long continued, “We are glad to walk away from the weekend with four points within Conference USA play. Pushing ahead though, we need to maintain this aggressiveness against SMU and Tulsa next weekend, as well as the remaining games scheduled.”
Marshall will have a chance to add to its unbeaten streak that has heightened to three games next weekend as The Herd hit the road to battle SMU and Tulsa.