Blazers Clinch MIAC Berth with Victory 3-1
10/20/2007
Late season pressure proved to be fuel for the College of Saint Benedict soccer team, leading them past the feisty Cardinals of Saint Mary’s University to a decisive 3-1 victory, and helping them earn their first MIAC playoff berth since 2003. Sophomore Allison Tourville’s (Plymouth, Minn. /Armstrong) two-goal effort helped put the Blazers back on track Saturday in St. Joseph, Minn. The Blazers had lost their last three games and had fallen to second place in the MIAC standings before today’s victory. They remain only one point behind MIAC leading Concordia-Moorhead, who they will square off against in Moorhead on Saturday Oct 27; a game which will likely decide the fate of the MIAC championship.
Junior forward Kate Shaughnessy (St. Louis Park, Minn. /St. Louis Park) brought the Blazer faithful to their feet at the 32:01 mark of the first half, when she punched home a loose ball in front of the net— resulting from a corner kick from the foot of Sam Vanderlide (Maple Plain, Min. /Watertown-Mayer). It was Shaughnessy’s first goal of the season and her first goal since the 2005 season. 
The Cardinals swooped back to tie the score at one goal apiece early in the second half, when St. Mary’s leading scorer Bridgette Baggio drove a penalty kick past goalkeeper Shannon Strohm (Burnsville, Minn. /Apple Valley). It looked like the Cardinals were back in the game, until Tourville netted a rebound off the hands of the Cardinals goal keeper putting the Blazers ahead 2-1. Less then a minute later, Tourville was back in the act again scoring her second goal of the game and her third of the season. The goal was assisted by Shaughnessy and Allyson Draxler (Plymouth, Minn. /Benilde-St. Margaret's) It would be more than enough for the Blazers to earn win number 13 on the season.
Tourville’s breakout game was a welcomed surprise for the Blazers. The Blazers were held scoreless in their last three games, and had manufactured only three goals in their last six contests. The Blazers have not scored more than one goal in a contest since the first weekend of the season. After being one of the teams top scoring threats as a first-year, Tourville has struggled at times adjusting to a new offensive role on the team, but she broke out of that rut with today's performance.
Coach Kate McNeil was impressed by the way her team responded in the second half.
“I’m very proud of the way our women kept their composure and rebounded after the Cardinals tied it on the penalty kick. We are just focused on winning the conference title,” McNeil said.
To win the conference title the Blazers must beat Augsburg College at home on Wednesday Oct. 24 and then travel to Concordia-Moorhead and defeat the MIAC leading Cobbers on Saturday Oct. 27. With today’s victory the Blazers clinch one of the top two seeds, and are set to host a MIAC semifinal game on Oct 30 at the College of Saint Benedict. The championship game date is set for Nov 3. The times and teams have yet to be determined.
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Robert Gerads, CSB Media Relations Student Assistant
Athletic Department
College of Saint Benedict
37 South College Avenue
St. Joseph, MN 56374
320-363-5301
Fax 320-363-6098