Viterbo tops Waldorf in NSAA contest
By Waldorf Sports Information Director
FOREST CITY – The Waldorf University women’s soccer team saw its school-record string of five consecutive shutouts come to an end, battling in a 2-0 loss to Viterbo University during Wednesday’s North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) match.
“I’m proud of our performance,” Waldorf coach Michael Wilson said. “The girls are playing well and caused Viterbo a lot of problems.”
The V-Hawks (7-6-1, 2-1) were held scoreless until the second half, but prevailed behind goals from Erika Schultz and Kristin Mathiowetz.
Despite a hard-fought effort, playing shorthanded slowed the Warriors (4-8-2, 0-1-2).
“It was difficult to compete for the entire 90 minutes against a well-established team that has great depth,” Wilson said. “We have a lot of injuries at the moment and unfortunately, tiredness and two lapses of concentration cost us.”
Viterbo outshot Waldorf by a 20-9 advantage. Katie Meyer recorded four saves against four shots to earn the shutout for the V-Hawks.
Hanna DeVries collected six saves while facing eight shots for the Warriors. The junior from Albert Lea, Minneapolis, entered the match with a school-record five consecutive clean sheets and saw her school-record consecutive shutout minutes reach 552 minutes, 39 seconds before coming to a close. With 105 saves in three years, DeVries moved into fourth on Waldorf’s career record list.
In a first half that saw Viterbo control most of the possession, the Warriors made their presence known.
With less than 25 minutes remaining in the opening half, Waldorf senior Brittney Thornton gained possession on a steal. Two V-Hawk defenders went to cover Thornton. She made a pass to sophomore Chloe Schmaltz, who took a shot that went high.
Thornton attempted a penalty kick with 14:14 left until intermission, but Meyer came away with the save.
Schultz delivered the first goal of the night, scoring unassisted in the 58th minute.
Viterbo nearly notched another goal just a little more than a minute later, but was unable to capitalize. A shot from Macy Kalscheuer hit the post and Sienna Fraser missed on the rebound four seconds later.
Thornton fired a shot from approximately 20 yards out in the 73rd minute, but Meyer secured a crucial save to deny the equalizer.
Mathiowetz aided the V-Hawks with an insurance goal in the 78th minute while Sam Duhr contributed the assist on a right-side cross pass from the baseline.
Thornton accounted for four of Waldorf’s nine shots, putting two shots on target. Senior Mia Crail provided two shots, one of which was on frame. Freshman Kiarra Houston added a shot on goal while junior Chelsea Delgado and Schmaltz also attempted shots.
The Warriors have been highly competitive during NSAA play this season and had held opponents scoreless in conference action until the loss to Viterbo.
Waldorf looks to bounce back as it closes out conference play and the regular season on Saturday against Bellevue University (9-5-1, 2-1) in a 12 p.m. kickoff at Bellevue, Nebraska.
“We will work on our mistakes and be ready for Bellevue,” Wilson said.