Gusties Gain Win Over Bethel

Seniors and Team Prevail on Senior Day 2-1

The Gusties came out flying this afternoon for Senior Day, playing and battling despite the fog the continued to roll in throughout the game.  The Gusties dominated the first half and finally converted on the hard work of the forwards and midfielders.  Anna Basil flicked on a header behind the Bethel back line to a streaking Amanda Cartony, fitting for her final home game, Cartony found herself 1v1 with the Bethel keeper, opened her hips and placed the shot home to get the Gusties on the board.  Putting up 8 shots in the first half, but only converting on the one the Gusties took a 1-0 lead into half.

The second half Bethel came out with more fervor and attack putting a few more shots on goal and added time and pressure in the Gustavus half.  It would be a break on the left side that found Maddison Ackiss with an opportunity to catch the keeper out of position and only one defender in front of her.  Ackiss rifled a shot that tucked in opposite side netting to put the Gusties up 2-0.  A free kick deep in the Gustavus half for Bethel proved costly as Bethel shot directly off the kick and made it a 2-1 game.  Coach said it was going to be a battle and battle it was, with the final three minutes being a push from both sides.

The Women's Soccer team is forever grateful to it's six spunky, talented and full of character Seniors; captains Estee Berg, Amanda Cartony and Liz Underwood, as well as Leah Brossoit, Emily Papagapitos and Ana Gleason.  Each one has tremendous impacted this program in a meaningful and positive way. Thank you!!

Photo Gallery

Box Score

Women’s Soccer Holds On For 2-1 Win Over Bethel On Senior Day

Posted on October 30th, 2013 by Tyler Grey

The Gustavus women's soccer seniors (L to R: Amanda Cartony, Liz Underwood, Estee Berg, Emily Papagapitos, Leah Brossoit, and Ana Gleason).

St. Peter, Minn. – With a blanket of fog covering the city of St. Peter, the Gustavus Adolphus women’s soccer team took the Gustie Soccer Field for one last time on Wednesday afternoon when they squared off with Bethel University.  After the Gusties extended their lead to 2-0 late in the second half, the Royals made a comeback bid with a goal at the 87:24 mark.  However, it would not be enough to overcome a passionate Gustavus team on its Senior Day as the Gusties held on for the 2-1 win.

With the win, Gustavus improves to 8-8-0 overall and 3-7-0 in the MIAC, while Bethel drops to 6-10-1 overall and 2-7-1 in the MIAC.

“It’s great to get a win in our final home game,” said Head Coach Laura Burnett-Kurie following the victory.  “We haven’t played at home for the last four games, so it was nice that our girls came out and were focused on the game even though they wanted to make it special for the seniors on Senior Day.  They still came out with the right mentality: that it was going to be a battle and we weren’t necessarily going to win just because it was Senior Day.

Indeed, nothing would be handed to the Gusties on Wednesday.  Despite holding a shot advantage of 8-1 in the first half, Gustavus was only able to score just once and took a 1-0 lead to halftime.

Playing in her final game on the Gustie Soccer Field, senior Amanda Cartony (Stillwater, Minn.) put the Gusties on the scoreboard board in the 32nd minute.  Cartony got behind the defense where she received a pass from Anna Basil (So., Maple Grove, Minn.) and beat Bethel goalkeeper Micale Jensen one-on-one for the first goal of the match.

“It was definitely fitting for Cartony to score on Senior Day,” explained Burnett-Kurie.  “She has just been so consistent all year and it is great to have some players around her that can set her up and make plays.  We have players that can contribute, which you saw today.”

The Gusties added another goal in the 84th minute when Maddison Ackiss (Fy., Fairbanks, Alaska) pushed forward to the left wing.  Ackiss ripped a shot left-footed to the opposite post where ball rattled its way home to put Gustavus on top 2-0.  The goal would prove to be the game-winning score as the Royals came back to score less than four minutes later on a free kick.  But it was too little, too late for Bethel in the 2-1 loss.

Gustavus was outshot 6-3 in the second half to cut its advantage to 11-7 for the match.  Gustie goalkeeper Roisen Granlund (Fy., St. Paul, Minn.) was awarded with the win after logging all 90 minutes in net and making five saves.  Bethel keeper Micale Jensen registered six saves in the losing effort.

“It felt great,” described senior Liz Underwood (Fergus Falls, Minn.) of winning the final home match of her career.  “We got to leave it all on the field for our last home game and we got a win, so we are all happy about that.”

“It is sad and happy at the same time because it’s our last game, but we won, so that makes it better,” added fellow seniorAna Gleason (North Easton, Mass.).

“We never completely settled down and found our touch,” finished Coach Burnett-Kurie.  “A lot of that is due to it being Senior Day and our last home game, but the fact that we could still create dangerous opportunities and grind out a win makes us optimistic going into the last game of the season.”

Gustavus will head to St. Paul on Saturday for its season finale against Hamline.  Kick off for that match is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.

Under the Lights

Gusties Fall to Augsburg 4-0

Hampered by injuries, the Gustavus Women's Soccer team took to the field Saturday night to face the Auggies.  The Auggies got on the board early and did not look back.  Facing the attacking 3-4-3 formation, the Gusties attempted to slow down the Augsburg offense.  With some excellent touches and taking advantage of the opportunities they created the Auggies put three goals up in the first half.

The starting lineup for Gustavus featured three players in different positions than they normally play.  It just goes to show their immense versatility and knowledge of the game.  Despite the score, the Gusties fought and displayed their heart, fighting until the last whistle.  While the Auggies tacked one more on the the 2nd half, the Gusties pressed and controlled the ball after that goal and created some dangerous scoring chances.

The Gusties host their last home game, Senior Game on Wednesday October 30th vs. Bethel at 3:30.

Box Score

Women’s Soccer Struggles To Overcome Early Deficit, Falls To Augsburg 4-0

Posted on October 26th, 2013 by Tyler Grey

Minneapolis – The Gustavus Adolphus women’s soccer team could not overcome an early 3-0 first half deficit in a 4-0 loss to Augsburg College on Saturday night at Edor Nelson Field.  The Gusties were outshot 22-4 in the loss.  Gustavus is now 7-8-0 (2-7-0 MIAC), while Augsburg improves to 9-3-4 (5-3-1 MIAC).

Augsburg opened the match with four straight shots before connecting on the fifth.  Olivia Muyres put the Auggies on the scoreboard at the 9:04 mark with her 17th goal of the season.  Good ball movement led to the goal, which was drilled by Muyres from six yards out.

It was Muyres again at 25:04 to extend the Augsburg lead to 2-0 in the early going.  Muyres spun and fired a shot after taking a pass from Molly Allen, who was credited with an assist on the play.

Less than a minute later, the Auggies extended their lead with a goal from Marie Fitzgerald.  Muyres moved from scorer to passer on the play, as she was given an assist.  For Fitzgerald, it was her seventh goal of the season that put Augsburg on top 3-0 heading into halftime.

The Auggies held a shot advantage of 14-1 in the opening frame.  Goalkeeper Roisen Granlund (Fy., St. Paul, Minn.)made seven saves in the half.

Although Gustavus showed much improvement in the second half, the Gustie women found it difficult to come back from the three-goal deficit in the final frame.  The Gusties created multiple dangerous opportunities in the final 45 minutes, but it was Carter Denison who put the finishing touches on the win for Augsburg with the final goal of the match at the 53:41 mark.  Denison took a cross from Marta Anderson and put it away to extend the lead to four goals, which is where it would stay for the remainder of the night.

For the game, Augsburg enjoyed a shot advantage of 22-4, while also holding the advantage in the corner.  The Auggies won the corner kick battle 4-0.

Gustavus keeper Roisen Granlund allowed four goals and made 10 saves in the losing effort.  She falls to 2-2-0 on the season.  Augsburg keeper Katie Gajewski was credited with the win to improve to 9-3-4.  However, she shared the shutout with Lucy Bukowski, who came played the entire second half.

“Augsburg is a very talented team,” mentioned Head Coach Laura Burnett-Kurie.  ”We battled with them physically and put up a good fight.  It took us a half to really get settled down, but when we did, we created some dangerous opportunities.”

Gustavus will be back in action on Wednesday, Oct. 13th when it hosts Bethel at the Gustie Soccer Field.  Wednesday will serve as Senior Day, where six seniors on this year’s squad will be recognized for their commitment to the Gustavus women’s soccer program.  Wednesday’s kick off is set for 3:30 p.m.

“This year one of our main goals is playing with pride,” finished Burnett-Kurie.  ”The idea that no matter what the score is or what our record is, we are going to battle, fight, and leave it all on the field.  we did that tonight, and will do that against Bethel again on Wednesday in our last home match of the year.”

Yoga for Soccer Players

Alternate Strength and Conditioning In October

There was a two week stretch this season where Gustavus Women's Soccer was playing a lot of games... on the road.  To keep up with their strength, the team generally lifts twice a week.  Once Monday mornings and once Thursdays after practice.  With the long stretch of games on the road, the coaching staff took a different approach and decided to supplement the lifting for yoga.  We all quickly found out that some of the team is not as flexible as others!

Well Balanced Attack

Gusties Improve to 7-7 With 4-0 Non-Conference Win Over Buena Vista

The Golden Gusties were at it again on Wednesday night in Storm Lake, IA.  Scoring goals that is!  The Gusties were quick to get on the board earning a corner kick in the first few minutes of the game.  Coursey Edwards sent in a dangerous ball the curved near post and ended up deflecting in the net off of a Beaver defender to make the score 1-0.   The Gusties continued to dominate the attack, working the ball and trying to break through Buena Vista's very high defensive line.  Once they broke down the defense and got the ball deep, it was again Coursey on the ball who found the back of the net to put the Gusties up 2-0 going into half.

The second half continued much the same with the ladies in black pressing.  It would be again Coursey Edwards getting involved in the attack, this time from the center back position where she dribble up the outside, beating a few players and drove in towards net.  She would slot the ball through the defense and find Maddison Ackiss on the other end to put it away for the Gusties 3rd goal.  The final goal was a brilliant combination from Ackiss and Amanda Cartony with Cartony finding the ball inside the box and putting it home in the final minute of the game for the icing on the cake!

The Gusties will face Augsburg this Saturday in Minneapolis at 7:00 PM.

Box Score

Women’s Soccer Blanks Buena Vista 4-0

Posted on October 23rd, 2013 by Tyler Grey

Storm Lake, Iowa – Under the lights of J. Leslie Rollins Stadium, the Gustavus Adolphus women’s soccer team shined in a 4-0 win over Buena Vista University on Wednesday night.  The Gusties scored twice in each half on the way to the four-goal victory.  Gustavus improves to 7-7-0 overall, while Buena Vista drops to 2-14-1.

Gustavus put the pressure on Buena Vista in the opening minutes.  Just 3:21 into the match, the Gusties were awarded with a corner kick.  After being sent into the box and deflected around, the ball found its way across the goal line for an own goal on Buena Vista that put Gustavus on top 1-0 in the early going.

Coursey Edwards scored a goal and
added an assist on Wednesday night.

The Gusties continued to pepper Beaver goalkeeper Tricia Schwartz throughout the remainder of the half.  Gustavus enjoyed a 15-2 shot advantage in the opening 45 minutes, which was capped off by a Coursey Edwards (Fy., Eden Prairie, Minn.) goal at the 39:57 mark.  Edwards’s third goal of the season came off of a rebound and extended the Gustie lead to two goals heading into halftime.

“We got on the board early, which was nice,” mentioned Head Coach Laura Burnett-Kurie.  “In the first half, we hit a couple of crossbars, we hit a post, and their goalkeeper made a few big saves, so it was great for us to get on the board early.”

Gustavus remained the aggressor after the break, drawing three consecutive fouls on the Beavers to open the second half.  Those three fouls gave way to a Maddison Ackiss (Fy., Fairbanks, Alaska) goal at 52:23.  Ackiss was assisted by Edwards on the goal.

From there, the Gustavus defense tightened, as the Beavers could not get anything going offensively.  The Gusties did not allow a single shot in the second half to secure a shot advantage of 22-2 for the match.

“They did a nice job with their counter attack,” said Burnett-Kurie.  “But our back line did an awesome job of slowing them down so they couldn’t get behind us.”

The Gusties went on to score in the final minute of the game when Amanda Cartony (Sr., Stillwater, Minn.) buried her sixth goal of the season to put the finishing touches on the 4-0 win.  Ackiss assisted on the goal.

Goalkeepers Roisen Granlund (Fy., St. Paul, Minn.) and Caroline Olson (Jr., York, Pa.) combined for Gustavus’s third shutout of the season.  Granlund was the goalkeeper of record.  She moves to 2-1-0 on the year.  Tricia Schwartz received the loss for the Beavers.

“Buena Vista played with a very high back line, which we haven’t seen much this year,” analyzed Burnett-Kurie.  “We did a good job of getting in behind them and played very unselfish tonight.  It was fun to see us move the ball like we did.  When we play our tempo, we are able to create dangerous opportunities offensively.  We were able to do that consistently tonight, which will be a key going into Saturday against Augsburg.”

Gustavus will be in action again on Saturday night when it takes to the road for an MIAC match up with Augsburg at 7:00 p.m. in Minneapolis.

Player of the Week (10/14-10/19): Maddison Ackiss

Last Minute Heroics

Not only does Maddi battle though in practices day in and day out, but she brings it to every game.  She is capable of scoring fantastic rocket shots from outside the 18 yard box, goals that make you say "Whoa!".  On top of that she's cheeky and smart on the ball.  Able to open her hips and calmly place a ball into the back of the net.  Tuesday at St. Kate's that's just what she did...

All tied up with under 5 minutes left to play, the Gusties were possessing the ball in the Wildcats half.  A unfortunate turnover, but hard work defensively from both forwards caused the ball to be turned over back to the Gusties, a quick switch of field and then a one time ball back across the grain from Heather Goff and Maddi found herself in alone on goal with just the St. Kate's keeper to beat.  Beat her she did, forcing her to commit and then opening her hips and tucking the ball off the far post and into the net.  As if the goal wasn't enough, she's got style and flare, so Maddi followed up her goal with a great celly!

Not only does she score goals, but she creates the opportunities for others to score as well.  She's dynamic and poised on the ball.  Her last minute heroics earned the Gusties their second conference win this week and thus her being Player of the Week!

Congrats Maddi!

Gusties Cannot Muster Comeback

Gustavus Drops 2-0 Decision to Macalester

Gustavus battled hard on Saturday afternoon, and not just against their opponent.  The weather was also a fierce competitor coming with rain, sleet, hail and thunder... maybe a little lightning too.  The entire team came out ready to compete and fight hard, which is what they did.  Roisen Granlund got her second straight start in net.  With changes in the lineup continuing to do good things the girls kept rolling and trying to be creative.

The Macalester attack was strong and poignant.  With Senior Georgia Cloepfil scoring a goal each half, the Gusties tried to muster an attack back but were not able to foil the Macalester defense or keeper.

Box Score

Women’s Soccer Drops MIAC Match To Macalester 2-0

Posted on October 19th, 2013 by Tyler Grey

Roisen Granlund made her second
straight start in net Saturday.

St. Paul – The Gustavus Adolphus women’s soccer team fell at the hands of Macalester College by the final score of 2-0 on Saturday afternoon at Macalester Stadium.  Scot forward Georgia Cloepfil proved to be too much for the Gustie defense to handle, as the senior scored both goals in the win.  Gustavus falls to 6-7-0 (2-6-0 MIAC), while Macalester improves to 9-3-1 (6-2-0 MIAC).

The Scots used a 12-1 shot advantage in the first half to take a 1-0 lead to halftime.  At the 24:23 mark, a cross in front ricocheted off of the head off a Macalester player and onto the foot of Cloepfil, who chipped it across the goal line to give the Scots the early lead.  Maggie Molter and Ingrid Greene were awarded with assists on the play.

Macalester enjoyed another shot advantage in the second half, this time a 16-4 difference.  Cloepfil scored her second goal of the afternoon just 2:45 into the second half.  The senior fired a shot from 20 yards out that flew over the top of an outstretched Roisen Granlund (Fy., St. Paul, Minn.) and into the back of the net to give the Scots the 2-0 lead.  After scoring three goals against the Gusties last season in St. Peter, Cloepfil has now scored five goals over the last two seasons.

For the game, the Scots held a shot advantage of 28-5.  First-year goalkeeper Roisen Granlund suffered her first loss of her career after playing all 90 minutes and recording nine saves.  Macalester goalkeeper Ellen Palmquist was awarded the win after needing to make just one save.

The World Looks So Small From Way Up Here

Conquering Fears on the High Ropes Course

Back in September the Gusties took to the sky... well, sort of!  The team tackled a high ropes course in Jordan, MN to overcome some fears, become closer as a team, and have a lot of laughs!  While a fear of heights is very real for a lot of people, even girls on our team.  Senior Emily Papagaptios struggled at last year's course, but was able to complete the entire thing this year!  Not only was she hilarious in doing so, it was great to have the team around her supporting her to push her through and out of her comfort zone!