SMC Soccer: Belles destroy Olivet squad of 11 players
By: CHRIS FEDERICO
Sports Editor
The Belles soccer team smelled blood Saturday, and they went for the throat.
Olivet arrived at Saint Mary's with only 11 players — just enough to field a complete team — and the Belles never let up on their undermanned opponents, defeating the Comets 6-0.
"They only had 11 players, so they couldn't substitute anyone into the game," Belles forward Wendy Irvin said. "We try to go out and do the same thing every game, but we were just able to tire them out because they didn't have any subs."
The junior Irvin had two goals in the contest, moving her into second place in the MIAA with four goals on the season.
The Belles avenged two overtime losses to the Comets during the 2001 season with the lop-sided victory.
Olivet's deficiency of players also kept the team from making a scoring threat in the game. Saint Mary's goalkeeper Maureen MacDonald got her second shutout of the season in keeping the Comets off the scoreboard.
The victory pushes Saint Mary's record to 4-4-1 and 2-1-1 in the MIAA Conference — tied for second place and just one game out of the lead.
"I think all of the teams have lost a game, so there's not really any one team that is dominating," said Belles sophomore Jen Concannon, who also had a pair of goals in the match. "Right now any team can take it, and we definitely feel we have a chance."
Midfielder Emily Wagoner and defender Jen Herdman also added goals to the Belles' tally.
The Belles continue to show that they are a team on the rise. Only nine games into the season, they are two-thirds of the way to their six-win total from last year.
"Last year was sort of a starting over for our program," the sophomore Concannon said. "It kind of started with Bobby Johnston last season, and now Coach Pfau has come in and done a good job with the team this year."
The Belles next take on Kalamazoo College on the road Wednesday at 4 p.m. The game will be important for Saint Mary's, as Kalamazoo is just a game behind in the MIAA standings at 2-2.
"The conference as really been turned upside down from last year," Irvin said. "The teams that were winning last year are losing now, so we think we definitely have a chance to move to the top of the conference."
All Sports Stories for Monday, September 30, 2002
