COLUMBUS, Miss. – It was a celebration trifecta for The W women's soccer on Sunday afternoon at the Roger Short Soccer Complex. First-and-foremost, the Owls (4-10-2, 3-4-0) took down St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) foe Westminster College (6-7-2, 4-2-1), 1-0, to snap a five-match winless streak.
The win also resulted in MUW, mathematically, assuring itself of post-season berth in the SLIAC women's soccer championship tournament for the second time in as many years as league members.
The cherry on top of The W's Sunday was that all of this occurred in conjunction with the squad's annual Senior Day game, as well. It was a perfect way for the Owls' septet of seniors –
Andi Brabham,
Anna McKee,
Kate Blankenship,
Anacia Leyland,
Alex Moon,
Callie Abraham, and Columbus' own
Haven Tuggle – to cap their special day of recognition.
"We had a great week of training and I believe it showed this weekend," MUW Head Coach Ana Ramos stated. "The team bounced back well and earned a fantastic team win against a competitive Westminster team. Players continue to step up and accept the challenges put before them. It's always a great feeling to celebrate the accumulation of the seniors' accomplishments here at The W with a well-deserved win."
The challenge before the Owls was a Westminster side that sat in the No. 3 position in the SLIAC standings entering the day. Despite facing the hard-offensive charge of the Blue Jays, the bend-but-don't-break mentality of MUW's defense shone through. Westminster sent nine shots on-goal and all were turned away by Moon, as she added to her school season saves record, now at 144).
"We got the lead early and defense as always managed to stay strong and composed," Moon beamed. "Just like they have every single game this season. A lot of our success is down to (the defenders)."
While MUW was out-shot, overall, by 12-6 margin (9-4 on frame), it was the Owls that netted the shot that counted the most by junior Kim Norway in the 21st minute of play off a corner kick. At the 20:27 juncture,
Kiersten Taylor sent the corner toward the face of the goal, where Leyland redirected the ball to Norway, who finished by putting the ball past WC goalie Kendall Chigas to make it 1-0.
Norway - despite registering her team co-leading fourth goal of 2024 and first match-winner of the season for her - was quick to point to the contributions of her teammates. "We all came together and played our game," Norway said. "And we were able to pull out a win. I'm really proud of our performance."
Statistically, The W proved to be the aggressor in the opening half by out-shooting the Blue Jays, 4-3. A second half salvo by Westminster (9-2 on shot attempts) was thwarted by MUW's back line to give the host Owls a much-needed victory that was truly cause for celebration.
