MILWAUKEE – Today at the Mount Mary University Soccer Invitational, the Blue Angels lost to visiting North Central University by a final score of 2-1. Rival Alverno College won a double-overtime nail-biter in game two of the invite between the Inferno (1-0) and Crown College (0-1).
In the season opener, the Blue Angels came out against a lively NCU squad. The Rams attacked often with seven first half shots, four of which were on goal. MMU attacked the goal two times in the first half themselves with their shots on goal.
NCU broke the tie with a setup pass from Emma Brekhus to Dakotah Sparrman who knocked the ball across the goal line for the first tally. The late first half goal was notched with 37:06 on the clock. When the first half concluded, the Blue Angels went into halftime trailing 1-0.
Both teams began the second half with a revitalized energy. The Rams continued to apply the offensive pressure with seven more shots in the second half. Hannah Rose (So./Jeromesville, Ohio) was able to get a hand on three of the four shots on goal. But a bloop-pass from Cheyenne Brown set Sparrman up for her second goal of the game at the 75-minute mark.
MMU continued to trudge ahead and forced the ball into their opponent's territory for nearly the entire remainder of the game. Following a deflection, Becky Onan (Sr./Grafton, Wis.) corralled the ball and found teammate Allison Klotz (So./Port Washington, Wis.) open on the left side. Klotz shifted passed the defenders and bent a shot over the top right hand side of the goal to make the score 2-1.
"I was pleased with our first match. We didn't find the result, but we really accomplished some nice things early in the season," said Mount Mary Head Soccer Coach Jon Gulrajani. "We really did a solid job defending as a group, with two new players in the back line I though we adjusted and did a really good job covering each other."
Sophomore Hannah Rose (0-1) finished the game with seven saves and two goals against. Anna Hartwig (1-0) finished the game with four saves in her five opportunities.
"Hannah really stepped up in goal and made some great saves throughout the match," added coach Gulrajani. "Overall pleased we had four new players contribute very well in their first game and our returners did a nice job organizing and controlling parts of game. There was a lot to be happy about, and the group is excited to get better and learn."
The Blue Angels will start the Mount Mary Invite tomorrow at 10:30 am when they host Crown College (0-1) for game one. Then North Central University (1-0) will take on Alverno (1-0) following the conclusion of game one, all games' live stats can be found at mtmaryathletics.com.
