ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Gustavus women’s soccer team’s season was ended in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference quarterfinal playoff matchup by a shootout loss at St. Catherine University Tuesday afternoon.
With the double overtime tie and shootout loss the Gusties have their season cut short by the Wildcats. Gustavus finishes the season with an overall record of 10-6-3.
No. 4 seed St. Kate’s took down the No. 5 seed Gusties 3-1 in a shootout after two overtime periods left the scored tied 1-1. Sophie Leininger (Jr., Plymouth, Minn.) scored the lone shootout goal for the Black and Gold.
Both regulation goals for Gustavus and St. Kate’s came in the second period of play. Chase Miller (So., Brooklyn Park, Minn.) gave the Gusties a 1-0 lead around the 53rd minute mark, tallying her second goal of the season. The Wildcats responded just a minute later as Iryna Talkachova tied the game up at 1-1 with her fourth goal of the season.
After regulation time and two overtimes, the Gusties and Wildcats were unable to change the score. St. Kate’s led in shots 29-24 while Gustavus led in shots on goal, 8-7. Maddison Ackiss (Sr., Fairbanks, Alaska) and Emily Skogseth (So., Burnsville, Minn.) led the Gustie attack with two shots on target each.
In the shootout the Wildcat’s first two shooters put goals past Gustie goalkeeper Ashley Becker (So., Farmington, Minn.). Leininger was the lone Gustavus scorer and three Gustie misses along with another Wildcat goal allowed St. Kate’s to prevail, 3-1.
“At the beginning of the season the team set a goal of making it to the playoffs,” said Head Coach Laura Burnett-Kurie. “We found ourselves in a tough spot in achieving that goal after the first week of October. At that point the team came together and committed to each other and their goals and we went 5-1-1 in conference play. Making that commitment and achieving that success allowed us to be playing in this game today. That’s what this season is all about. We overcame adversity multiple times this fall and it was great to see that resiliency. We battled hard today and didn’t end the season on a loss. Not many teams can say that.”
“As for the seniors, they were our first recruited class so they will always hold a special place in our heart. They started at the bottom of the conference and during their four years they qualified for the MIAC playoffs twice, won a playoff championship and was able to experience playing in the NCAA tournament. That alone speaks volumes to their talent and character. They are a pretty great group,” Burnett-Kurie said.