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To Europe and Back, womens season in review The Wildcats started off their season with an adventure to Munich, Germany, home of the great European soccer power Bayern Munich, and the 1972 Olympics. The setting opened the team’s eyes to everything that the game has to offer. Traveling in the Austrian Alps, the girls were able to see some of the most beautiful sights in the world. In competitions on the trip the Lady Cats went 1-1-1, scoring 11 goals BU’s return to Kansas and the sweltering heat, proved no match for the motivated Wildcats as they opened the season with a convincing 5-0 win. The next five games proved a great learning ground as the Cats faced three teams that would appear in the top 25 rankings. Upon their return to North Park, the Wildcats added 12 goals in the next two games. They finished the with a pre-conference record of 5-3. The conference season opened with a road victory at Lindenwood, which marked the first ever win for the Lady Wildcats in St. Charles. BU was down early to the Lions, but fought back from a one goal deficit and won the game 2-1 in overtime. The Cats got past a tough Culver-Stockton team which set up a match up with the #7 William Jewell. The Wildcats would come out firing versus the Cardinals, hitting the goal post, crossbar and having two shots saved off the line, but in the end BU fell victim to a goal mouth scramble and lost 0-1. The next game against pre-season #9 McKendree ended in a 3-3 tie. The Cats got rolling again with a 5-0 win over Avila, and were held to a 1-1 tie by a feisty Mid-America squad. The Cats then faced Benedictine College in a game that had all the fireworks of a playoff contest. BU came up short 2-1, giving up a goal in the last minute thirty of the game. A resounding 5-1 win at Missouri Valley set the Cats up for a showdown with the conference champs from Graceland. Taking the field in one of their best games of the season the Wildcats stood up in the face of the #17 Yellowjackets and traded chances. Although the game was lost in overtime, the Lady Cats won the respect of a talented opponent. The playoffs brought a road trip to Benedictine. The first half saw the Cats take control in the 6th minute and never look back. Two shots were saved off the line, and two open goals were left unfinished by the Cats as the half ended 0-0. The second half saw the game get more physical, and with a foul the Ravens started the scoring off of a great set piece from 30 yards. Fifteen minutes later the Ravens doubled their lead with a goal from a corner kick. The Wildcats redoubled their efforts, pushing players into the attack. Again they would have two balls roll across the BC goal untouched, and a shot from six yards saved miraculously by the BC keeper. The Cats pressure paid off with a goal with two and a half minutes left, but it was not enough. A shot from eighteen yards out went just wide with six seconds left. In a game that would see the Cats out shot the Ravens 17-4, have three times as many corners, and gave up only 4 shots, BU would complete the season with a 2-1 defeat.
The team built around a young nucleus fought and learned a lot this year. And their hard work was rewarded, placing 8 players on the All-Conference teams. 1st Team-
2nd Team-
3rd Team-
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Jennifer Sampson
