Stephen F. Austin
Incarnate Word
Perfection In Southland Conference
11/2/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Box Score | 
Photo Gallery | Southland Conference Tournament Bracket
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjack soccer team finished off perfection both in Southland Conference play and at home, defeating Incarnate Word 1-0 on Sunday afternoon at the SFA Soccer Field to close the regular season.
SFA (15-2-1, 11-0 SLC) finished a perfect 11-0 in SLC play, while posting an unblemished 8-0 mark at the SFA Soccer Field.
With the defeat of UIW (2-13-3, 2-6-3 SLC), the Ladyjacks finish undefeated at home for the third time in the last four years (2011; 2012; 2014). SFA also picked up its 13th consecutive win to tie the 2011 Ladyjack squad for the longest winning streak in program history.
SFA and the Cardinals played a silent opening few minutes, before senior Chelsea Raymond gave the Ladyjacks a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute. The native of Irving, Texas, drove up the right side and created a one-on-one opportunity with UIW's keeper Heather Kowalik (2-5-3) to score what later proved to be the game-winning goal. The game-winner is the fourth of the season for Raymond and ties fellow senior Zuri Prince for the team-lead with nine overall goals.
The Ladyjacks, with the advantage, played a physical match the rest of the way to pick up their 12th shutout of the season, as senior goalkeeper Morgan Glick improved to 13-2-1 in the net. Glick, who ends the regular season with 11 shutouts, made one save across 64 minutes played, before freshman Lillie Ehlert , who also recorded a save, took over.
SFA outshot the Cardinals 14-5 overall, while holding a 4-2 advantage in both shots on goal and corner kicks.
The Ladyjacks, who secured the top seed back in their 3-0 triumph over Southeastern Louisiana on Oct. 24, will now begin preparation for the upcoming Southland Conference Tournament in Beaumont, Texas, at host Lamar University. SFA will enjoy a first round bye and play the winner of the fourth-seeded McNeese State and fifth-seeded Nicholls in a 7 p.m. match on Friday, Nov. 7. The SLC Tournament Championship match will be held on Sunday, Nov. 9, at 1:05 p.m. with the winner earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Postgame Quotes
Head Coach Wally Crittenden:
Crittenden's opening comments...
"It was a good result, but it was a grind. It was one of those games where both teams were committed physically and from an energy standpoint, I think we had to balance that. We kept really good possessions in the first half. I thought we were able to impose our self on several different levels. Their keeper came up big, saved one of our PK's and made a couple others shots miss. From an attacking standpoint and attacking output, I thought the first half was good. In the second half, I'd like to see us sustain possession a little bit more and I'd like to see us be a little more dangerous in the final 20 yards. But nonetheless, there were still some very good opportunities created. It was a great opportunity for us to get different players in to develop them and prepare them for postseason play. When you look at the objectives, our first is to win the game, second is to play well and define the personal groups that are going to carry us in postseason and then the third is to make sure we have good balance and get players experience where we can. We did all those things today. As a coach, you always want to do things a little better, a little bit cleaner, but we did today what we needed to do."
Crittenden on finishing season undefeated both in Southland Conference play and at home...
"It is very special. It is hard to in win consistently. It is hard to go undefeated in conference. And it is hard to be in a position to develop your roster and keep perspective of the different objectives that you want to achieve, while, at the same time, winning. I'm really proud of our team. I'm really proud of our kids and there is no doubt they enjoy this. It is very special for them. As we go through the postseason, our focus moving forward, and once the season is over, they are going to reflect on this and be really, really excited and understand how special it is."
Crittenden on upcoming Southland Conference Tournament...
"Our first objective is going to be to heal and to recover. This was a demanding game, so from a physical standpoint, we need to get our kids' bodies back to where they need to be. Then we will fine-tune our schemes for postseason and fine-tune our progressions and how we move and shift our shape. Then, ultimately we will keep it loose and light, but make sure we remain a good intense focus and understand the details. Details are what are going to be the deciding factor moving forward. I expect a really good humbled week of training, but I also expect us to have good confidence going into Friday."
-SFA-
