Cobbers Secure MIAC Playoff Spot
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (10/26/11)—A pair of second-half goals secured a 3-0 win for Concordia over Augsburg and a spot in the upcoming MIAC playoffs. Gina Weiss scored the game-clinching goals as the Cobbers earned a spot in their ninth straight conference tournament.
The win comes less than 48 hours after Concordia dropped a 1-0 decision in California against UC-Santa Cruz. The Cobbers flew to Minnesota on Tuesday and then came up big in the must-win contest. The victory pushes CC's overall record to 10-2-5 on the year. It marks the ninth straight season that Concordia has won at least 10 overall games. CC is now 6-1-3 in conference play.
The Cobbers needed 15 minutes to put their plane legs behind them and get into the flow of the game. After they started to attack on the wing, CC was able to get chances on the Auggie net. Concordia got on the board in the 36th minute when Sarah Rounds knocked home a loose cross from six yards out on the right side of the goal. Rochelle Hickerson was credited with the assist. For Rounds it was her team-leading 11th goal of the season. She now has 33 career goals and 89 career points. CC wound up outshooting the Auggies 13-5 in the first 45 minutes of play.
The second half was all about Concordia's ability to get behind the Augsburg defense from midfield. Weiss used her speed to turn the defense on several occasions and scored twice in a span of a little over 7:00. Both times she was able to shake free of her defender on the right side of the back line and score on the breakaway. She scored the first insurance goal at 69:11 on a through ball from Laura Prosinski. Weiss then finished off a passing combination from Prosinski and Liz Robinson which set her free from 20 yards out and slotted home her seventh goal of the year at 76:29. Weiss has now scored at least one goal in three of the last five league games.
The Cobbers held a 20-7 advantage in overall shots for the game. They also had a 12-4 edge in shots on goal. Concordia keeper Ali Nelson stopped four shots to record her 10th shutout of the season. She now has 28 career shutouts. The Auggies split the goalkeeping duties with Katie Gajewski playing the first 81:56 and making eight saves. Taylor Becker played the final 8:04 and stopped one shot.
Concordia will now return home to host St. Ben's in the final regular-season home game for the three CC seniors. The Cobbers can finish anywhere from second to fourth place in the league standings. The top two teams in the conference earn the right to host a semifinal game in the conference playoffs on Tuesday, Nov. 1.
