UCHICAGO POSTGAME INTERVIEW
CHICAGO -- The 7th-ranked University of Chicago women's soccer team picked up a 3-1 win over UW-La Crosse on Sunday to advance to the Sectional round of the tournament.
The Eagles jumped out to a lead early as they had their foot on the gas from the opening whistle. After several opportunities, UW-La Crosse found the back of the net on a great cross from the endline that was slotted in at the far post.
In the 32nd minute, the Maroons were bale to strike back as
Berkeley Hedgspeth made a spirited run down the right side and whipped in a cross from the touchline, and
Indira Naylor was able to find the ball in a scramble and slot it past the keeper to level the score at one.
Coming out of the halftime huddle, the Maroons dominated from the jump, and Naylor recorded her second consecutive brace with an absolute banger from 35 yards out.
Jamie Nguyen found Naylor 40 yards from goal, and when the sophomore turned, she saw nothing but space and ripped a dipping strike the went just under the crossbar and into the back of the net for a 2-1 lead.
In the 67th minute,
Mary Stuart Kerrigan had another outstanding look to double the lead when her shot from the corner of the 18 had eyes for the upper 90 at the back post, but the Eagles' keeper made an outstanding save to tip it off the crossbar.
UW-La Crosse had its best chance to find an equalizer after a foul just outside the 18 gave the Eagles a free kick from 25 yards out. Sara Speltz, the first goal scorer for the Eagles, ripped the free kick off the post, and the UChicago defense was able to survive the scramble for the rebound to keep the lead at one.
Just 29 seconds later, the Maroons would double their lead to 3-1 when Naylor slipped through the Eagles' defense, beating three defenders off the dribble, and played the ball cross the face of goal to a wide open
Annabel Edwards at the back post for the goal.
Naylor finished the Regional with four goals and two assists for a team-high 10 points, and her back-to-back five-point performances are the most by a UChicago player this season.
With the win, the Maroons improve to 14-2-3 on the season. UChicago advances to the Sectional round of the tournament on Saturday, November 22, where they will take on #17 Cal Lutheran. The location of the game has yet to be officially announced.
