Forward Maegan Kelly and goalkeeper Natalie Kulla combined to get the #12/#14 Marquette women's soccer team off to a great start with a 1-0 win over Western Michigan on Friday night. Kelly took a pass from fellow sophomore Kate Reigle and snapped a shot past several WMU defenders and WMU keeper Maddie Reed in the 25th minute for the the only goal the Golden Eagles would need. Kulla saw just three shots, all in the 2nd half, and only needed to make 1 save for her 33rd career shutout. Kulla's night was made easier by the offensive pressure created by her teammates, with the Golden Eagles getting 19 shots on goal, 11 in the second half, and forcing Reed to make 5 stops to keep the game close.
I mentioned on Friday that Northwestern was no stranger to upsets of top teams, and they showed that same fire again on Sunday night. They forced Marquette to a scoreless overtime before senior forward Lindsey Page buried a pass from Rachael Sloan in the 94th minute for the 1-0 overtime victory. The goal was Page's second career game winner on just five overall goals. Kulla kept her scoreless streak going while only needing to make 1 save on the 6 shots that Northwestern got off. The Golden Eagles kept their strong offensive play going in this game, generating 14 shots and forcing Wildcats keeper Anna Cassell to make 5 saves in regulation to keep the score even.
Marquette looks to keep their 11 game home winning streak going on Friday with a match against Saint Louis.