Box Score
As the Bruin women entered Saturday's match against the Clearwater Christian College Cougars, the team was looking to make improvements to get back on track. They would be facing one of their toughest opponents this season as the Cougars came into the match undefeated at 11-0-0. The Bruins' record stood at 2-6-0. The weather would yield no problems as the clear October sky made a great setting for a match between the two schools. 

From the opening kickoff, the Cougars showed why their record is no fluke as the team began to maintain possession throughout the first half. Despite their barrage of shots on net, Bruins’ goalie Tori Anderson made save after save.

“I thought we played well tonight on defense and we were able to communicate clearly with each other,” Anderson said.

The Cougars have averaged nearly six goals per match, and continued to shoot on goal throughout the first half with Anderson making great saves. At the end of the first half, neither team found the back of the net as the score read 0-0. The Cougars made shot on goal nine times while the Bruins only managed four throughout the first half.

“We had a different tactical scheme coming into this game,” Coach Chris Carmichael said. “We knew they were a strong offensive team and we were able to do a good job keeping them at bay.”

As the second half began, the Bruins kept up their defensive wall as the Cougars began to make advances towards the net. The scoreless tie would finally be broken as the Cougars found the hole in the Bruins armor and scored. Tori Hale would net the goal off of a beautiful cross to put the Cougars up 1-0. “It came right to my foot,” Hale said. “It was a beautiful cross from my teammate and I was able to finish it.” 

With the goal, the Bruins tried to go on the offensive as Sarah Porch and company moved the ball up field. Despite their attempts, the team was not able to find the back of the net as the Cougars squelched every Bruin opportunity.

In the 64^th minute of the second half, Cougars forward Leah Zwiers would find the back of the net after Tori Anderson’s save went right to Zwiers foot for the goal. The Bruins made several last-ditch efforts to get on the board but as the final buzzer sounded the team found themselves on the losing end of a 2-0 shutout and their third straight loss.

“Every game we keep getting better,” Coach Carmichael said. “We need to realize we played a good game, keep improving, and take care of business on Monday.”

The Bruins will have a short weekend of rest before welcoming in Johnson University on Monday night. The upcoming match against Johnson is a makeup game which was postponed back in September. The Bruins will be looking to get back on track as we near the end of their inagural season.