Point Park women’s soccer finished in a 1-1 tie on Saturday against the West Liberty Hilltoppers. Fans gathered in Highmark Stadium to celebrate homecoming weekend and watch a pivotal conference matchup.
The Pioneers bounced back in the second period after a slow first half on offense. Klara Bring, a first-year forward from Sweden, scored her first collegiate goal in the 60th minute to tie the game.
Bring came off the bench in the final minutes of the first period, along with Austyn Burkett and Maria Gomez. These substitutions led the Pioneers through halftime and contributed to its comeback attempt in the second half.
“We’re very fortunate to have players on the bench, some depth on the bench, where we can really take players,” Coach Kelly Raddar said. “In our system of play, and philosophically, we try to play players to their strengths.”
The Hilltoppers took an early lead in the game after West Liberty’s Maya Taggart scored in the third minute. Thirty seconds prior, West Liberty had yet another shot attempt on target.
Despite five shot attempts on frame, Point Park remained scoreless through the first period.
“That was not the plan,” Raddar said. “And as you can see, we shut them down the rest of the game. But it was already behind the eight ball given, giving up a goal in three minutes.”
Point Park goalie Frederieke Rijlaarsd recorded two saves in the first period. The Hilltoppers had zero shots on goal in the second half.
On the other side, the Pioneers entered the second period with explosive offensive play, combining for 10 shots and six shots on target.
“Ultimately, I believe we all had a sense of determination to come into the half pressing up the field and wanting to win that game,” Burkett said. “We saw a lot of great opportunities in the last 15 minutes [of] the first half to score, but we just couldn’t capitalize on them and I think that some sort of spark under us.”
Bring led the Pioneers in several columns, recording one goal, four shot attempts and four shots on goal in 40 minutes of play. Other game leaders included Cara Spry, Gillianne Stewardson and Vanessa Vazquez.
As the Pioneers continued to gain momentum offensively in the second half, the game came to a halt due to a weather delay. Lightning was spotted in the area with 9:22 remaining, which led to two stoppage periods and almost an hour without play.
“It allowed both teams to make changes and allowed [West Liberty] to make a lot of changes and get some rest,” Raddar said.
Point Park sits at fifth in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) East Division with a 0-2-1 conference record. The team goes on to face Fairmont State and Salem this week.
Fairmont State is second in the MEC East and is undefeated in conference play. The Pioneers take on the Falcons on home turf on Wednesday, Sept. 25.
“They will come out the gate and put a lot of pressure on us,” Raddar said. “I don’t think sitting back is going to serve as well in that game.”
The Falcons lead the conference in total assists, shot attempts, shots on frame and are tied as goal leaders.
“I’m excited to see what Fairmont brings to the table,” sophomore defender Austyn Burkett said. “Knowing my teammates, I have no doubt we will compete with them right off the bat.”
The Pioneers recorded more shots and on-target attempts against West Liberty than it has all season. With an improving offense, Burkett shared that she is hopeful about the future of the team.
“We were finally able to get a good amount of shots on the West Liberty team Saturday and our defense was solid the entire game,” Burkett said. “I think we are all motivated to go into the [Fairmont] game and show the MEC who we are and what we are capable of.”
The Pioneers’ season continues through early November, and postseason play occurs shortly after. Point Park competes for its first conference spot in the NCAA as members of the MEC.
“We get to play new teams at a much higher level than what we saw in the RSC,” Burkett said. “It’s already so evident in the level of intensity these teams bring to each match. We are only at the beginning of our season and we have so much left to go through.”
