The women's soccer team will look for an offensive burst this weekend, as the team will travel to Cincinnati to take on new conference foe Xavier.
The Pirates offense stalled last week, as the team dropped consecutive 1-0 games to DePaul on the road in overtime and against Creighton at home.
Although the Pirates were held scoreless in both games, that's not to say they didn't have their chances.
The team had a combined 23 shots, 10 of which were on net, but failed to convert. In the team's game against Creighton, the Pirates controlled possession in both halves, and se- nior forward Katie Ritter had five shots, but none found the back of the net. The team had two shots (both headers from Ritter) and two cor- ner kicks. The first header from Ritter fooled Creighton goal- keeper Danielle Rice, but instead bounced off the crossbar.
"I just knew I had to keep fighting no matter how bad it sucked that I missed those chances," said Ritter, who leads the team in goals and points.
"The only thing now that I can do is look forward and put the chances away when I have them." After the game, head coach Kazbek Tambi said that although the team is getting great looks, the lack of finishing at the net will allow their opponent back into the game.
"It's disappointing because we had the opportunities to score early on and in the second half," Tambi said. "We had some great looks at goal that didn't get put away, and the longer you keep a team in the game, the better chance the other team will come back and sneak something on you."
Luckily for the Pirates, Xavier has struggled mightily since making its debut in the Big East. The Musketeers have failed to win a match, and have been outscored 14-2 in the team's four conference matches.
The Musketeers are led by freshman forward Tori Doss, who has three goals and four assists that give her a team-leading 10 points on the year. Xavier has a very balanced attack, with three players having three goals on the year. The Pirates, however, rely on Ritter and senior forward Ashley Clarke to generate the team's offense. Ritter and Clarke are the only players who have multiple goals on the year (six and two respectively). Clarke also has six assists on the season.
Before the team takes the field again, Tambi suggested that the team needs to "reflect" on the loss to Creighton, and rediscover the team's confidence.
"What we ask, is everybody sit back and reflect and think about how they could have played a lit- tle bit better," Tambi said after the team's loss to Creighton.
"If we had a full crew that could be one notch better, and we finish our chances, we can win these types of games." The P
ates will take on the Musketeers at 3 p.m. on Oct. 12.
T.J. Brennan can be reached at thomas.brennan@student.shu.edu
