Women's Soccer
Eagles get big win in double overtime
Sept. 23, 2007
Montgomery, Ala. – The Faulkner Eagles were looking to even out the win and loss columns on Saturday as they faced off against Delta State University. The women’ soccer team was able to pull out a 3-2 win over the Lady Statesmen in double overtime.
After a 5-1 win over Alabama State University the previous evening, the Eagles entered Saturday’s game looking to improve to 5-5 on the year. Faulkner was trailing 2-0 at the half, but sparked a drive in the second with a goal by Nikki Jagt. Later in the half Jagt broke free from defenders again taking a slightly wide shot that was inadvertently driven into the net by a Delta State defender. After the own goal point the game remained tied until time expired.
The teams decided to play on and after the first overtime the score remained unchanged. Head coach Jeff Ireland asked his team for a final 10 minutes of everything they had left, promising them they would not regret the effort. A few moments later, Jagt placed the ball beautifully out of the goalkeepers reach, clinching the game 3-2.
The women’s program is now 5-5 on the season. The victory also gave the Eagles their first back-to-back wins of the year. Their next game will be a conference matchup against Reinhardt College on Sat., Sept. 29, at the YMCA fields in Montgomery.
Eagles soar high over Florida College
Sept. 17, 2007
Montgomery, Ala. - Faulkner's women's soccer team had little difficulty with Florida College on Saturday. The Eagles found the back of the net 11 times, blanking the Falcons 11-0. The abundance of goals was more than double that scored in any game thus far this year and accounted for over 40 percent of the the Eagles' scoring for the entire season.
The Eagles played the University of Alabama-Huntsville on Sunday falling to the Chargers 6-2. The women's program sits at 3-5 on the year and will face Alabama State University in Montgomery on Sept. 21 at 7 p.m.
Eagles claim first win
Spet. 3, 2007
Montgomery, Ala. - Faulkner's women's soccer team overcame a two game drought as they clinched their first win of season today over visiting Warner Southern 3-0.
The program struggled in their first two games this year against third ranked Lee University (Tenn.) and Southern Wesleyan, both conference opponents. Despite numerous injuries and a shallow bench the Eagles were able to pull out a much-need victory.
"We defended well as a team," head coach Jeff Ireland said. "They worked hard today and it paid off."
The defensive effort was prevalent throughout the field and sustained at the net by senior goalkeeper Kasey Gallea with 14 saves. "We finally clicked as a team," said Gallea. "We defended well and didn't stop until the end."
Nikki Jagt, who scored all three of the team's goals, agreed. "We played as a team more today than we did in the first two games. We also scored early and that motivated us."
With only a single player available to relieve the field at any given time, the Eagles have had to play tired. Stamina is key to the success of a short roster and the team has tired to improve in this area without further jeopardizing the overall health of the program. "Our fitness is a factor," Ireland said. "With only twelve girls it's by far the thing we need to work on most."
The women's team will face off against Spring Hill on Friday in Mobile.
