Six wins and two draws have put the Fighting Scots at the top of the NCAC Div. III standings, however, without any conference games under their belt, it remains to be seen whether or not they will contend for the conference title.
The Scots traveled extensively yet again this weekend, easily defeating Albion College 4-1, and settling for a cagey 2-2 tie with Kalamazoo College.
Wooster continued their already impressive winning streak with this weekís contests bringing their record to 6-0-2.† The first contest of the weekend was an easy win for the Scots who out-shot their opponents 19-10 and netted four goals to their paltry one.†† Albion College was left with a lot to think about at the interval with Wooster scoring three unanswered goals in the first half of action.
The upperclassmen of the squad showed the first-years they could score as well in this high scoring contest.† Liz Mott í11 found the net first with a header from a corner kick delivered by† Chantal Koechli í10.† Koechli has certainly gone above and beyond the call of duty this year, scoring the third goal against Albion.† Mary Riney í12 got involved in between the two upperclassmen when the sophomore fired yet another unassisted goal from the top of the box at the 20-minute mark.
Albionís luck didnít change in the second half when Nicole Himebaugh í12 opened her account scoring her first goal of the season unassisted just 21 minutes after the interval.† The Britons were able to maintain some pride by scoring in the closing minutes of the game to save the shutout though it was too little too late.† The Scots held on to their comfortable lead to defeat their opponents 4-1.
The second game of the weekend brought more competition for the Scots, which is a real change of pace from the usual massacres the Scots deliver to the opposing squads.† The game against Kalamazoo College was a cagey affair that saw Nicole Himebaugh í12 score her second and third goals of the season negated by an equal performance from the Hornets.† Kalamazoo drew first blood early in the game, though were overtaken by a brilliant two-minute scoring display by Himebaugh.
In less than three minutes Himebaugh put the Scots ahead, finding the net twice off of assists from first-years Erin Davison í13 and Paige Piper í13.†† The Scots were unable to hold on to their lead however, and in the 54th minute they conceded a disappointing equalizer.† Neither team was able to break the tie in the 96 minutes of play that followed as the game went into double overtime.† It was a disappointing result but the Scots can hold their heads high knowing that they have maintained their unbeaten record.
This past Wednesday the Scots hosted their first home game of the 2009 campaign when John Carroll University came to Carl Dale Memorial Field.
The Scots started the game on a mission, with an early score coming from Nora Simon í10 in the 10th minute of the match.
After the goal the team seemed to fall into a slumber of complacency, lacking a controlling work rate going forward.
The offense struggled to keep up with the play that led to Simonís goal, failing to string together passes through the midfield and wing play going toward goal.
Solid defense paired with the consistent play of goalie Michele Ring í13 maintained the lead. Ring, who was cleared to play after suffering a concussion over the weekend, had a few great saves in first half action, and the Scots held a 1-0 advantage at the halftime break.
The second half showed much improvement with the second goal of the match coming from Piper on an assist from Maggie Kehm í12. The 2-0 lead held and the Scots improved to 7-0-2 on the season.
The real test for this team will come when it is pitted against other big NCAC competitors like Denison and Wittenberg, though if they can maintain their current form, a favorable result is all we can expect from them.