(Argo Athletics Media Release)
GREAT FALLS -- After a four game road trip, the University of Providence women's soccer team played at Argo Field with an inspiring 2-0 win over Corban.
"The girls competed for almost a full 90 minutes, which is what we've been talking about for all season," head coach Brian Clarke said. "It was nice to be back home and pick up three points and beat one of the top teams in the conference right now."
After a scoreless first half, senior Eme McLaughlin found the back of the net off the pass from fellow senior Isa Ortman. Shayenn Thompson scored in the 88th minute to solidify the victory for the Argos.
"I was really proud of the girls," Clarke said. "We've had a lot of adversity this year, with the travel and the tough games. We finally got to come home and then they had to shovel snow off the field for the past two days to make sure they could play. They could have easily came in and laid down but they didn't. They wanted to fight, they wanted to battle and they did so. I'm really proud of them."
The Argos are now 10th in the conference, but only one point behind the 8th place team. Clarke is hoping this win over Corban, who is 4th in the Cascade Conference, will help the team gain some momentum as they make a push for the playoffs.
"This was a big win to carry into the next couple of weeks," he said. "We played a pretty tough schedule at the beginning of conference play. We've been on the road too so it's been brutal. It's big to pickup a win and then carry that in the next couple of weeks as we look to make a run for the spot in the playoffs."
They'll hope to get started tomorrow against Northwest Christian, who are two spots behind them in the standings, tomorrow at 3:30 in Great Falls. That game will also serve as senior day for the Argos two seniors, Eme McLaughlin and Isa Ortman. Coincidentally, the duo connected on the first goal of the match on Friday.
"It was a pretty cool moment," Clarke said. "They both played a really gutsy game. It's nice that they got a little reward for that as well."
MEN: Corban 6, Providence 3
Despite an encouraging first half comeback, the University of Providence men's soccer team fell to Corban University 6-3 Friday afternoon.
Finding themselves down 2-0 early in the second half, the Argos responded with a goal from George Holloway in the 28th minute. 10 minutes later, Alain Murhula found the back of the net to even the match. With eight seconds left in the first half, Gudmundur Gudmundsson found the back of the net off the corner to take a 3-2 lead into halftime.
However, the Warriors rebounded in the second half. The Warriors scored four unanswered goals in the second half propelling them to a 6-3 victory. The Warriors were led by a hat trick from Charles Cleyton.
"We absolutely blew it in the second half," head coach Matt Ball said. "I was proud of our guys getting out of a 0-2 hole. We really battled and had all the momentum at half time. But we completely collapsed in the second half. The score speaks for itself."
The Argos out-shot the Warriors in the first half eight to six. Things were reversed in the second half however, as the Warriors out-shot the Argos 13-5.
"They're the top team in the league for a reason," Ball said. "We had them beat in the first half. We proved to ourselves we can compete at that level. But we also proved how bad we can be. If we can put a full 90 minutes together than we will be a scary team."
With the loss, Providence drops to 6th in the conference with a record of 4-3. They will face Northwest Christian tomorrow at 1 p.m.
"The best thing we can do right now is play another game and get our confidence back," Ball said. "We're facing some adversity right now. Let's see how we respond."
