Bulldog women’s soccer pummels Dort Defenders
Photo Description: Sophomore Niah Kirchner dribbling the ball up the field to her teammates.
Photo Credit: Courtney Wright
Cohen Carpenter
Sower Staff
Fresh off the heels of their most dominant performance of the season, the Lady Bulldogs kept the pedal to the metal against the Dort University Defenders Wednesday night, winning 4-0.
Dordt came into the Sept. 20 matchup undefeated in conference play (1-0-1), and were handed their first Great Plains Athletic Conference loss of the season. Concordia, on the other hand, improved to 2-0 in GPAC play and 6-2 overall. The victory Wednesday night was the third in a row for the Bulldogs, matching their season-high win streak when Concordia won the first three games of the 2023 season. Throughout the current win streak, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 16-1.
In the Bulldogs’ past two wins, Concordia was able to get on the board first – they continued that trend Wednesday night. Concordia put the first shot on goal a mere minute into the action when sophomore forward Kierstynn Garner charged the goal early and had her shot blocked by Dordt keeper, junior Jenna Wright. Unsatisfied with a mere shot on goal, Garner continued the attack and just five minutes into the game, she finished the job. After a well-placed pass by sophomore midfielder Elena Ruiz found its target close to midfield, Garner torched the Dordt defense and once again found herself face-to-face with Wright. This time, a soft touch off the boot of Garner nudged the ball to the right of Wright and the Bulldogs took a 1-0 early lead.
The Bulldogs remained aggressive with the lead and managed to keep the ball on the Dordt half of the pitch for a majority of the first half. These efforts culminated in more scoring opportunities for the Concordia offense. With 28 minutes left in the half, Garner found herself in Defender territory once again. This time, sophomore midfielder Savannah Andrews worked herself open just outside the penalty area, directly in front of the goal. Garner threaded the needle, finding the powerful leg of Andrews. With the ball lined up, Andrews let loose on the ball from 30 yards out, finding the top left corner of the goal, rendering the keeper’s efforts futile. Through 45 minutes, the score remained 2-0 and the Bulldogs headed into the locker room with a healthy lead.
At half, the Bulldogs led comfortably in most categories with eight shots to the Defenders’ one, seven of which were on goal. Furthermore, the Bulldogs had three set pieces – two corners and a penalty kick – while the Defenders only had one. The stellar first half reinforced a trend in the 2023 Bulldogs squad: they like playing in the opening frame. Including the two goals Wednesday night, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 13-3 in the first half, outshooting them 46-21. Concordia does not enjoy the same advantage in the second frame this season, only outsourcing their opponents 8-4.
The second half opened featuring a far more aggressive Dordt offense. This effort produced the Defenders’ best looking shot on goal of the game with 30 minutes left to play when freshman forward Joslyn Terpstra fired a ball from within the penalty area, just missing wide right. This instance proved to be an exception as Concordia continued to be unrelenting on the attack as the night wore on.
Twenty-six minutes remained in the contest when Andrews stepped out of bounds to take her third corner kick of the game. A strong kick shot the ball to the middle of the goal box where initially, Dordt keeper Wright was able to punch the ball skyward. Eyes on the target the whole way, sophomore defender Hannah Kile was able to meet the ball in the air, scoring the third Bulldog goal of the day, this time by virtue of the header.
With just over five minutes left to play, the Bulldogs were still hungry and looking for more. Again, Kierstynn Garner put the Dordt Defenders’ name to the test. Finding herself in the penalty area again, Garner turned two Defender defenders into one and put a shot on goal that was promptly deflected by the goalie. Undeterred, Garner dashed to the ball and put another shot on goal, this time making it harder to block. Two shots on goal in a matter of seconds, one more successful than the other, gave the Bulldogs their most commanding lead of the night, 4-0, Concordia advantage. This lead proved hearty enough to last the final four minutes and the Bulldogs left the field victors yet again.
With 16 goals in their past three contests, Concordia’s offense is nearing must-watch territory. “We have a cohort of players that can score. They’re all feeling good right now,” stated head coach Nick Smith after the 4-0 pounding. “Confidence is breeding more confidence.”
Among the aforementioned cohort, there were quite a few who showed out on Wednesday night. Most notable among the bunch was Kierstynn Garner, who allotted five shots on goal, an assist and the Bulldogs’ first and final goals of the game, goals seven and eight on the season. In the midfield, Savannah Andrews also had a goal, her ninth of the season, with an impressive six shots to boot. The third goal-scorer for the Bulldogs was Hannah Kile, whose one shot on goal found the back of the net in the second half. Kile produced both her first shot and first goal of the season on Wednesday, giving her a neat 100% shot percentage for the year.
One of the game’s unsung heroes was senior defender Grace Soenksen. While her contributions may not be as statistical as her teammates, they are no less crucial. Coach Smith had this to say about Soenksen after the match: “Dordt has a good forward that is going to do some good things for them this season. We asked Grace to marshal her and that’s what she did; Grace had her in her pocket the whole game… She wins the battles she puts herself into.”
The high-flying Concordia offense will next take the field Sept. 23 in Orange City, Iowa as the Bulldogs look to stay undefeated in the GPAC against Northwestern College. First touch is at 3:15 p.m.
