WILMINGTON – In search of a much-needed victory, the Wilmington College women's soccer team came up with a winning recipe. An early goal, along with the comforts of playing at the friendly confines of Charlie Gilhart Field, helped the Fightin' Quakers upset Baldwin-Wallace Saturday, 2-0.
The Yellow Jackets came into the game ranked seventh in the most recent NSCAA (National Soccer Coaches Association of America) Great Lakes Region poll.
Senior Sarah Watters (Cincinnati, OH/Turpin) immediately put pressure on the Yellow Jackets' defense, and the early distress played off in the game's 12th minute. She took a nice feed from junior Lauren Price (Xenia, OH/Waynesville) and beat the goalkeeper at the far post. It was the sixth goal of the season for Watters.
"Big-time players make big-time plays and Sarah and Lauren are definitely big-time players," said WC head coach Steve Spirk. "We talked about the three games we lost; we fell behind early. Sarah's goal was huge. Anytime you can score on your opponent in the first 15 minutes, it's good."
Wilmington snapped a three-game losing streak, all of which were on the road and in the conference.
"The girls felt like we needed this win at home," said Spirk. "We like to think of ourselves as road warriors, but even road warriors get tired. It was good to come home. It was a big game for us."
With Wilmington holding onto a one-goal lead, Price took matters into her own hands; well to be exact, her foot. In the game's 56th minute, she beat the keeper to the upper 90 from 35 yards out for her fifth goal of the year.
The Fightin' Quakers outshot B-W, 17-11, including a 9-5 advantage in the second half. WC had six corner kicks, compared to two by the Yellow Jackets.
Freshman goalkeeper Sarah Stauffer (Beavercreek, OH/Beavercreek) recorded six saves in helping Wilmington record their ninth shutout of the season.
Wilmington (9-5-1 overall, 2-3 OAC) hits the road again 4 p.m. Wednesday to face Otterbein, which is the lone unbeaten team remaining in the league at 5-0.
