UWM Women's Soccer Takes A Break From League PlaySept. 24, 2002 MILWAUKEE - Panther Women Take Break From League Schedule Fresh off a 2-0 start to the 2002 Horizon League season, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's soccer team will take a break from league play with a pair of non-conference games this weekend. The Panthers will venture into Missouri Valley Conference territory with a Friday (Sept. 27) match at Creighton University before heading to Cedar Falls, Iowa, for a Sunday (Sept. 29) battle with the University of Northern Iowa. The UWM-CU game starts at 7:00 p.m., while the UNI contest begins at noon. The Michael Moynihan File Three-time Horizon League Coach of the Year Michael Moynihan is currently in his sixth season as mentor of the UWM women's soccer program. A 1990 graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Moynihan has led the Panthers to three Horizon League regular season titles and two NCAA Tournament appearances during his tenure. The winningest coach in the program's history, Moynihan boasts a 63-33-12 mark in five-plus seasons, good for a .639 winning percentage. Assisting Moynihan in 2002 is right-hand man David Nikolic and 1999 UWM grad Crystalin Montgomery. Scouting The Opposition - Missouri Valley Foes Creighton- The Bluejays of Creighton University enter the week of play with the exact 3-4-1 mark as the Panthers. CU started off the season 3-2 but have since dropped a pair of matches to Pacific and Nebraska-Omaha with an impressive tie versus in-state rival, Nebraska. Creighton, a member of the Missouri Valley Conference, was picked to finish third in the league's preseason poll behind Illinois State University and the University of Evansville. The Bluejays boast a balanced attack with five different players having scored two goals each on the season. Lulu Quigley leads CU with seven points on the season, while junior forward Krystle Campa has scored six points. The Bluejays hold a 4-1-0 edge in the all-time series. Northern Iowa- A third-year Division One program, the women's soccer team at the University of Northern Iowa has yet to win a game in 2002. UNI is 0-7-1 overall after dropping a hard-fought 2-0 contest to Illinois State University and a 3-0 decision at Valparaiso University. Sophomore forward Emily McCart leads the Panther offense with two goals and four points on the season. Sunday's game will mark the 2002 home opener for Northern Iowa. Tagteam Combo In Net The old saying "six of one, half dozen of the other," holds true for the UWM women's soccer goaltending status in 2002. Shots are stopped and wins are posted despite who's in net. While possessing to entirely different styles, senior Mary Duffy and freshman Molly Schneider have combined for shutouts in UWM's last two contests. Duffy has stopped a total of four shots in playing the first half of the Youngstown State and Wright State games while Schneider made five stops in preserving both of the shutouts. Do We Have To Play The First Half? The first half of games have not been kind to the 2002 UWM women's soccer team. In six matches this season the Panthers have yet to score a goal in the game's first 45 minutes. Meanwhile, the opposition has found the back of the net seven times in the first half. The Panthers' inability to score isn't from a lack of chances. Despite the 7-0 goal differential; UWM has outshot the opposition 62-42 in the first half while taking 21 corner kicks to 14 for the opponents. Or...Can We Start At Halftime?? While the Panthers may struggle to score early on in contests, they definitely haven't had trouble dominating opponents in the second half of matches. In an almost direct contrast to their first half struggles, UWM has scored all nine of its 2002 goals in the second half of games while allowing only one goal defensively. The nine second-half goals have come on 54 shots, while the UWM defense has held the opposition to one goal on 45 second half shots. Instant Offense Basketball player turned soccer star Elizabeth Chudy has provided major offense off the bench for head coach Michael Moynihan. Chudy, who is currently third on the team in scoring with three points (one goal, one assist), notched her first career assist in Sunday's 1-0 victory over Wright State. Chudy, who has played in seven games, leads the squad with 18 shots taken. The Dominance Continues The more things change, the more things stay the same for UWM and the Horizon League. With a pair of shutouts this past weekend, the Panthers have now posted eight straight regular season Horizon League shutouts and ten consecutive blankings versus loop foes overall. Over the ten-game stretch Milwaukee has outscored the opposition 22-0. Furthermore, UWM has now won 13 straight regular season league tilts and have outscored fellow league opponents 32-4 in the process. "Kubie" Finds The Net Returning Horizon League All-Tournament Team performer Katie Kubacki notched her first goal of the 2002 Sunday in UWM's 1-0 blanking of Wright State. The goal was the 7th of the hard-working midfielders career and her first career game-winner. Athlete Of The Week Nominee Freshman goalkeeper Molly Schneider earned UWM's Horizon League Athlete of the Week nominee for her efforts this past weekend. The freshman netminder earned victories in both of the Panthers' victories as she stopped five shots in playing the second-half of both contests.
Panther Pressbox With Coach Moynihan
UWM Women's Soccer Coach Michael Moynihan on His Team's Play:
"We can still do a few things better but we have solved some of our early season problems on defense and we are getting better and better. Offensively, we still struggle to find the net at times but we are creating a lot more chances."
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