EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Despite outshooting Evansville, the SIUE women's soccer team fell 1-0 in the Cougars' first exhibition match of the season.
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The Purple Aces struck in the second minute and never looked back. Coach Derek Burton on how getting scored on so early impacted the rest of the game.
"The start wasn't ideal, and we didn't start as well as we should have," said Burton. "In the second half, we played at a higher level with better communication and tempo."
With the Cougars outshooting the Purple Aces 14-7 and having five corner kicks compared to Evansville's two, Coach Burton is feeling optimistic about his team.
"It is a very good sign, we created a lot of chances and had great looks," Burton adds. "We ended up getting nine of our new players into the game to get their first college playing experience."
Juli Rossi spent a lot of the time last season as the Cougars starting goalkeeper. Rossi played 45 minutes tonight and recorded two saves. Ashlyn Walter led the team with three shots tonight, with one on goal.
"Rossi was very solid for us tonight, having two great saves. Walter and Courtney Benning both had dynamic impacts on the game up front for us," Burton said.
"We play exhibition matches to better our team and gain valuable experience," Burton added. "We are taking things game by game and we look forward to playing at home on Saturday."
The SIUE women return home this Saturday at 1 p.m. for an exhibition match against IUPUI at Korte Stadium.
