The women’s soccer team continued their dominant stretch of play last week, defeating River State Conference (RSC) rivals Brescia University, 7-1, on Thursday, Oct. 13, and St. Mary of the Woods College, 3-1, on Saturday, Oct. 15.

Both games were on the road. The wins now boost the Pioneers to 6-6-1, with an overall record at .500 or better for the first time this season. The team now stands at 5-0-1 in conference play as well, good enough to tie for first place with rival IU-Kokomo. 

“We are all very excited for the tests that await us in the games to come,” said senior forward Holly Pascoe. “We are confident that we can remain undefeated through the rest of the season, but we have to stay both mentally and physically strong to do that.” 

Point Park would walk into Owensboro, Kentucky with a fire in their eyes, as they visited the Brescia Bearcats for the first time this season. The offense came out firing on all cylinders after a 1-1 draw last week against IU-East, with the Pioneers scoring the first goal of the game a mere five minutes into the match off the foot of Pascoe. Pascoe then went on to lead the Pioneers in a record-setting performance, scoring 5 goals.

Pascoe scored for the second time 10 minutes later in the 15th minute to make it a 2-0 game. Junior forward Chanell Britten would put the game entirely out of reach before the end of the first half, scoring in the 27th minute to make it 3-0 in the soon-to-be routing. 

The second verse was the same as the first it seemed for Point Park. Pascoe would once again score to start off this time the second half of play, making it 4-0 and giving her the hattrick in only 45 minutes of play. The transfer from New Zealand would then turn around and break Point Park’s school record for most goals in a single game, scoring her fourth and fifth goals of the game in a minute apart from one another in the 53rd and 54th minutes of the game.

With the score now at 6-0, Britten would find the back of the net again for her second of the day, making it 7-0 in the 61st minute, before Brescia would finally respond in the same minute to make it 7-1. This would remain the final score. 

Point Park would fire off 23 shots on net, with 14 of them landing on goal, while keeping Brescia’s offense from getting many chances. The Bearcats would only get 12 shots, while only landing seven on goal, with six of them being in the second half. Pascoe would lead the team in goals, shots, and shots on net, while sophomore forward Tamaya Wolford would lead in assists with two. 

Game two against the St. Mary of the Woods Pomeroys was a bit of a closer match, but once again the Pioneers would come out looking to dominate in Terre Haute, Indiana, the home turf of SMWC. The first half of the contest was a closely contested affair, with neither team seeming to be able to break through offensively, with the Pomeroys being kept from even getting a shot off in the first 45 minutes of play. Pascoe would once again answer the call for offense late in the first half though, with a lead pass from junior middle Athena Beck allowing her to break away and net the first goal of the game in the 43rd minute to give the Pioneers a 1-0 lead. 

The second half would start off a little bit differently, with Beck being able to draw a penalty kick in the 58th minute. The utility middle defender would convert on her chance, making it 2-0 in Point Park’s favor to give what would be the game-winner for Point Park. In the 77th minute, Britten would once again supply the Pioneers with some insurance, finding the back of the net with a header thanks to a corner kick from sophomore middle Madison Spencer to make it 3-0. SMWC would find their first goal in the final minutes of the match, but were not able to mount any form of comeback, finishing the game at 3-1. 

The Pioneers would end the day with 14 shots, with 10 of them landing on net in a solid performance offensively. The defense would be the main ingredient to the game though, with the Pomeroys only being able to muster a single shot in the entire match, their lone goal in the 82nd minute. Beck would lead the team in shots with five, and tied with Pascoe in shots on goal and goals with three and one. Beck would also be tied in assists with Spencer with one a piece. 

With only four games remaining on their regular season schedule, the Pioneers will have one more home and road series to finish up October before they set their eyes on the postseason. The team will travel back home to take on WVU Tech on Thursday, Oct. 20, at 6:00 PM, before playing their final regular season home game on Saturday, Oct. 22 against the University of Rio Grande at noon. Saturday’s game will be senior day for the seven seniors on the team. 

“Senior day is always one of the most special days of the season,” said Pascoe. “We plan to not only acknowledge the day but to celebrate it with our seniors, looking back on all the hard work they have contributed to this program and looking forward to what life with college soccer will mean for them. I think it’s safe to say that graduating seniors and returners alike will be digging extra deep to make Saturday’s game a great one.” 

Both home games will be streamable through Point Park Athletics’ website, and both games will be played at Highmark Stadium.