X-Women soccer shutout Mounties

Antigonish, N.S. - The StFX X-Women (3-0-2) defeated the visiting Mount Allison Mounties (1-4-0) in AUS soccer action Saturday afternoon at StFX Stadium.

In the 15th minute, the visitors garnered the first quality scoring opportunity, with Taryn MacMillan (Moncton, NB) making a run down the right side, before crossing to Katherine Ollerhead (Wood Point, NB), whose shot was deflected wide by X-Women goalkeeper Nicole MacDonald.

Off the resulting corner kick, the strike by Myranda Weild (Calgary, AB), her team's player of the game, rolled wide of the post.

A short time later, in the 18th minute, the X-Women made it 1-0, on a marker by freshman Mercy Myles (Accra, Ghana). Logan Lee-Knight (Calgary, AB) started the scoring play, when she won a battle for the ball before making a lead pass to Chloe Brennan (Brookside, NS), who found Myles after tip-toeing along the end line to keep the ball in play. Myles redirected the Brennan pass, with her left foot, off the crossbar and over the line behind Mountie keeper Tessa Ritchie (Ottawa, ON).

The X-Women had a chance to double their advantage, but Amy Rowe (Aurora, ON) headed a Myles' corner kick over the crossbar.

In the 36th minute, after Olivia Czipf (Thunder Bay, ON) was fouled by a Mountie defender, Elise Brennan (Brookside, NS) sailed a free-kick, from 25 yards out, high over the crossbar.

Off a cross from Brittany Parks (Kennetcook, NS), Myles had another scoring opportunity, but Claire Neufeld (Newmarket, ON) made a sliding defensive play. Czipf headed her shot wide, off the ensuing corner kick.

After taking a feed from Chloe Brennan, midfielder Rachel Hawkins (Calgary, AB) ripped a shot just wide of the far post behind Ritchie.

The Mounties had a chance late in the first half to knot the score, after Neufeld broke up a corner-kick attempt and broke out of her zone, before feeding MacMillan, who rolled a shot just beyond the far post.

Early in the second half, the X-Women carried much of the play, with Claire Gibbons (Ottawa, ON) finding freshman Catherine Kennedy (Antigonish, NS), behind the defenders, who floated a shot just over the crossbar.

In the 64th minute, the Mounties pressed for a tying tally, but defender Olivia Wilkie (Rosemere, QC), the Subway player of the match, made a sliding tackle against MacMillan to thwart the threat.

Off an Elise Brennan corner kick, in the 78th minute, Rowe got her head on the ball, but she was too deep to get it on net.

With the X-Women pressing in the final minutes for an insurance marker, they collected several chances, including a pair engineered by Chloe Brennan.

In the 89th minute, StFX broke through, when Czipf found Parks - just outside the box - who put a ball ahead for forward Kevyn Timmons (Calgary, AB), who bested Ritchie with her strike. 

The Mounties will be back in action Sunday, Sept. 25, at 1 p.m., when they travel to Sydney to face the Cape Breton University Capers.

The X-Women will wrap up a weekend home stand, on the same day, when the Memorial SeaHawks visit Antigonish.

Game time is 1 p.m.

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