[dropcap]Soccer[/dropcap] can be a cruel game sometimes. Often there isn’t much of a difference between a series of results going one way or the other. That has thus far proven to be the case for the Creighton women’s soccer team through the first six matches of the regular season. The Bluejays (4-2-0) have two lopsided wins over Northern Illinois and Nebraska-Omaha which saw them outscore their opponents 8-1. In their other four matches, each decided by just one goal, they’ve split wins and losses against South Dakota, Missouri-Kansas City, Central Michigan, and South Dakota State.
As his team prepares for their first weekend road trip of the season, head coach Ross Paule knows his Bluejays had opportunities to win matches they ended up losing, and thus prevented them from being undefeated up to this point.
“There’s no doubt we had a good chance to be 6-0,” Paule said. “The two times that we lost were just because the mentality wasn’t right, and the focus wasn’t right. Whatever the reason is it boils down to each one of us individually stepping on the field and taking care of what you need to take care of to help the team win.”
The first setback of the season came on Sunday, August 23 at UMKC. The Bluejays led 1-0 into the 82nd minute, but they allowed an equalizer and fell asleep on a deflection off an outstanding penalty kick save by freshman goalkeeper Erin Scott. Their second defeat came this past Sunday when they laid an egg on their home field for 90 minutes in a 1-0 loss to a South Dakota State side that they had not previously lost to in 10 all-time meetings.
Watching the film of Sunday’s loss showed the team that the result was less about what their opponent brought to the field, but rather more about what the Bluejays didn’t bring — effort.
“I think they saw that our mentality really wasn’t right,” Creighton’s head coach said of what his players took away from the post-match film session.
“We gave South Dakota State too much time, too much space, and the effort wasn’t what it should be; not even close. That’s the first thing that they saw. When you see it on tape, and you’re honest with yourself, you know you can do more than what we did.”
As was the case after the loss to UMKC, the players hit the pitch after Sunday’s loss and trained like a team that is tired of losing matches, especially ones they feel they are supposed to win.
“This group hates losing, and that’s a great thing. They came to training with the right mentality, not sulking, knowing that we have a lot of work to do,” Paule said.
“That’s the good thing about this group, after good wins and after very tough losses, they’ve showed up and wanted to improve. That’s the sign of a good team. We’re a little bit inconsistent right now, and we’re working towards being very sharp for the Big East.”
In his first year as the head coach, Paule understands that inconsistent results are part of the process as everyone from coaches on down to the players tries to find their footing. Every day is almost like a brand new test, and Paule has no intentions to stop pushing until his players reach their potential.
“I’m looking at who can do it every day. As a coach I have high expectations for every single one of these players, and I want each one of them to look to make a difference,” he said. “They’re going to have to show up every day and look to be a difference-maker to be a part of this program.”
One thing that Paule will be keeping an eye on this weekend is how his players perform in atmospheres that don’t favor them. In their four home wins, the Bluejays have played in front of just shy of 680 fans per game, and most times that number has even doubled by the end of the match due to the early arriving crowd for the men’s matches that have taken place immediately afterwards. On those four occasions, they have produced 10 goals while only conceding one. In their two losses, one of which came on the road, they have scored only one goal while allowing three in front of an the average crowd of 433 people. What Paule wants his team to learn is to control the things they can control on the field, regardless of the size of the crowd or the energy in the stadium.
“The bottom line is you control how you step onto the field,” Paule said. “Whether the fans or the stadium or how big the game is creates the atmosphere, you have to be able to step out on the field and do it for yourself and for your team. That’s something that I pay attention to, but we need the players that are going to step on the field no matter what the circumstance is, and be their best. No matter how good the opponent is or how bad the opponent is, you have to step out and be as good as you can be, and give yourself a chance to be your best.”
The road trip to the Montana Cup this weekend in Missoula, Montana will see the Bluejays face off against a team on Friday in the Seattle Redhawks (3-2-0) that have wins over Oregon, Vanderbilt, and Gonzaga. That will be followed by a Sunday afternoon match against a team in the Montana Grizzlies (3-2-0) that have beaten Indiana State, Nevada, and most recently, Iowa. For Paule and his coaching staff, it will be the first chance for them to see how the players handle the type of road trip that come time for Big East play will have them playing away from their home crowd for the weekend.
“Every new experience for them is a challenge and a way for our team to grow,” Paule said. “These are two very good teams that we are going to be playing, similar to the Big East, and we’re going to have to go in and be very sharp. If we are sharp, and we take care of the way we can play, then we’ll have a great chance to get two good results.”
Creighton’s match on Friday against Seattle and on Sunday against Montana are scheduled to kick off at 3:00 p.m. (CST). Friday’s match will be the first meeting between the Bluejays and Redhawks in women’s soccer. Creighton has faced Montana just once before, beating the Grizzlies 2-1 in double overtime in 2013 at Morrison Stadium on current Bluejay midfielder Kirstyn Corder’s header in the 94th minute.
