The Women’s soccer team walked away undefeated to start off River State Conference (RSC) with back to back victories this week. The Pioneers defeated Carlow University, 3-1, on Thursday, Sept. 22, and Ohio Christian University,  4-1, on Saturday, Sept. 24. Both games were played at Highmark stadium, with the game against Carlow being labeled as a road game. The wins now place Point Park in first in the RSC standings, and the team now stands at 3-6 on the 2022 season. 

“Despite the results we’ve been getting from our previous games we knew that conference games were what really mattered,” said sophomore forward Tamaya Wolford. “Also having our friends and family there (at Highmark) to cheer us on and give us pretty big crowds definitely pumped us up and gave us more of a reason to play better.” 

Game one was the cross city Pittsburgh rivalry matchup, with the Celtics taking on the Pioneers for the first time this season. The first half was closely contested, but in the 28th minute, Point Park would finally be able to break through. A shot by senior forward Holly Pascoe would be mishandled by Carlow’s goalkeeper, putting the Pioneers ahead 1-0. The rest of the first half would stay silent, and it wouldn’t be until the final 45 minutes that the offense would appear. In the 56th minute, the Pioneers would find their game winning goal, with freshman defender Mireya Rojas scoring to put the team ahead 2-0. Point Park would add on some insurance with another in the 72nd minute, scored off the foot of senior defender Josie Valeri, who got the shot to bounce over the defenders head from range. Carlow would keep the Pioneers from getting the shutout with a goal in the 89th minute, but the Pioneers would come away with the final victory at 3-1. 

Point Park would lead Carlow in the shots department, 16 to 10, with 10 landing on net for the Pioneers, and only three for Carlow, in a solid defensive and offensive outing for the winners of the battle of the 412. Pascoe would lead the team in shots, as well as shots on net, with four and two respectively. Junior Goalkeeper Ella Serlin would get the start in net, saving two of the three shots she faced. 

Game two was another RSC matchup at Highmark Stadium, with the Trailblazers arriving from Ohio to take on the Pioneers in Pittsburgh. Point Park’s offense would come out firing on all cylinders against OCU, scoring their first goal in the 8th minute off the foot of Rojas to put them ahead 1-0. The offense would keep rolling a few minutes later, scoring again in the 11th minute thanks to Pascoe, before Wolford would net her own in the 18th minute to make it 3-0 in less than 20 minutes of play. Ohio Christian would finally net their own goal in the 24th minute off a long shot from midfield, before junior forward Chanell Britten would net the final goal of the game in the 37th minute to make it 4-1. Neither team would score in the rest of the first or second half of play. 

Point Park’s dominance was on display in this game, taking 20 shots to OCU’s four, with the shots on net being 15 to two in favor of the Pioneers. In a highly efficient day for Point Park, Wolford led the team in shots with six, landing five of them on net to tag with her insurance goal. Pascoe would be right behind her with five of her own, with four landing on net. Serlin would get the victory in net once again, shaving one of the two shots. 

“It’s honestly just trusting my teammates,” said Wolford. “I know they’ll help me just as much as I’ll help them on the field, so it’s a lot easier knowing if I mess up, they’ll be right there to either help fix my mistakes or to help me fix them as the game progresses.” 

The Pioneers will look forward to a week off this week, before returning to the pitch with home games on Thursday, Oct. 6 against Midway University, and Saturday, Oct. 8 against Indiana University East. Both games are RSC rival match ups as they enter the final month of their regular season. All home games are streamable through Point Park’s athletics website, as well as possible schedule changes.