Zero has become a digit all too familiar to the women’s soccer team this season. On 11 occasions, zero has been part of the final score of their games. Unfortunately for the Owls, a majority of those zeros have been listed under the Owls’ column.
The Owls have been shutout in nine games this season. Currently they are on a three-game losing skid in which they have been blanked each time.
“We’ve tried to stay real defensive and limit the other teams goals, so we knew we were going to limit our own chances,” said coach David Jones, who is in his first full season at the helm. “We don’t think we can run with teams full field, and it’s cut down on our scoring.”
If more scoring chances lead to goals, then that’s where the Owls have faltered. They have registered a total of 93 shots on goal in 15 games, compared to 157 by their opponents.
In their last three matches, the Owls combined for only 15 shots on goal. In a 1-0 loss to Atlantic Ten rival Dayton two weeks ago, the Flyers fired 34 shots on goal, compared to only three by the Owls.
Senior goalkeeper Jackie Mauro has been the one facing the barrage of shots each game. For all the pressure being put on by opposing offenses, she has remained solid. Mauro leads the A-10 with an average of 7.45 saves per game and is second in the league in total saves with 82.
“It’s frustrating, facing that many shots a game and not having our offense capitalize on their opportunities,” Mauro said. “It’s not that they’re letting me hang out to dry. I know they’re trying and working their hardest, so I think it has a lot to do with confidence.”
Confidence has been a major problem for the Owls all season. As a group they seem down whenever their opponent tallies the first goal. So getting out of a 1-0 hole has been their biggest challenge.
“We’re definitely a team that gets down when we get scored on,” junior forward Samantha Vietry said. “Once we get scored on we all put our heads down, when that’s the time when we should work the hardest. That’s real important in a 1-0 game.”
According to Jones, it’s been difficult to produce without the emergence of a true scoring threat. Currently, seven players have two goals, which is the most on the team. Vietry is the team leader in points with six, which is only one more than four other players.
Jones knows if they plan to compete next year, this is a problem he must solve with recruiting in the off-season.
“I have to get out there and bring in some kids who can score goals,” he said. “I have to find someone up top who can work hard and play aggressive and put balls in the back of the net. That’s a big part of the game that we’re missing right now.”
With only four games remaining on the schedule, the Owls have exactly that many chances to surpass their win total from a year ago, when they finished 4-13-1. With only one of those four teams having a winning record, the Owls know they have a chance to finish a frustrating season on a high note.
“I think that we need to go in and defend and work on finishing our shots,” Vietry said. “If we finish the opportunities that we get than hopefully the next four games we’ll win.”
Jonathan Campbell can reached at soup@temple.edu.
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