Kurtis Williams – For the Review. On Oct. 18, one day after playing Lewis & Clark College to a tie, the Linfield women’s soccer team traveled to Forest Grove, Ore., to take on Pacific University, who it defeated 1-0.
Despite an extra 20 minutes of play, neither Linfield nor Lewis & Clark could produce a goal. A mix of missed opportunities and stingy defense contributed to the scoreless tie.
Senior MacKenzie Doty led the ’Cats with two shots on goal, while junior goalkeeper Kelsey Hasselblad made five saves.
Freshman midfielder Anna Sours placed the ’Cats in the scoring column early on against Pacific with a goal off a cross from Doty.
Doty leads the team this season with 20 points, compiling nine goals and two assists in 14 games.
The single score held up throughout the back-and-forth game, giving Linfield a 1-0 win.
Hasselblad recorded six saves in her second consecutive shutout.
“Every game, the defense can only do so much,” Hasselblad said. “This weekend, the defense was really solid, and we weren’t scoring goals. When we’re all on the same page, we’re doing really well, but often times the defense or offense is struggling.”
The defensive strength comes when the team is changing formation. Instead of using a traditional lineup, the ’Cats’ coaching staff has shifted more players into the midfield.
Since switching to the new formation, the Wildcats have yet to allow a goal.
With Hasselblad, three defenders, six midfield players and one forward, Linfield has discovered a way to defend goals, but it is still searching for a way to score them.
“I do a lot of work up top; a lot of running back and forth,” junior forward and co-captain Rachel Miles said. “One of my main jobs is also to hold the ball and wait for those [players] to push up.”
The new system, Miles said, creates more pressure in the midfield, which helps maintain possession of the ball and push forward. The midfield strength makes it harder for opponents to attack through the midfield.
Hasselblad said her defense will get stronger as players return from injury and form a cohesive group. With fewer defensive players for now, communication on marking assignments is crucial for success.
“The defense has really worked on communicating with midfielders on who to mark up and when,” she said. “As our season’s gone on, we’ve just gotten better.”
Because of the uniqueness of the goalie position, Hasselblad spends a couple of days a week with former men’s goalkeeper Joe Locascio. Locascio also helps coach the McMinnville High School boy’s soccer team.
The squad takes its 5-5-1 Northwest Conference record and new formation to Tacoma, Wash., for a match against Pacific Lutheran on Oct. 24.