Saturday afternoon, the women’s soccer team gave Oklahoma Baptist University their first loss of the season.
The 3-0 victory over OBU was a conference win for the Golden Eagles.
Nicholas Robinson, director of sports information, released a recap of Saturday’s game, stating that five JBU players finished the match with at least a shot on target.
Sophomore goalkeeper Kristen Morency said the team possessed the ball well and took shots from distance and overall did a good job defending and covering for each other, but she noted that there were things that the team could improve on.
“Maybe fixing out mistakes on the field as they come,” Morency said. “Work to provide movement off the ball.”
Senior goalkeeper Alysan Burgbacher noted that the game and win on Saturday were a team effort.
“We’ve been working on putting a complete game together,” Burgbacher said. “Saturday’s game was just that.”
Both Burgbacher and Morency say the team has enjoyed the crowd’s support, and all it does for the overall feel of the game.
For Burgbacher, the fan support on and off the field brings a sense of community.
“This season, we have had more fans at our games than in the last three season,” Burgbacher said. “It’s great to see women’s soccer fans around campus sporting their bro tanks and other soccer shirts. It’s definitely exciting to look across the field and see a bunch of people supporting the team.”
Burgbacher noted that the women’s soccer team is 5-1 on the Alumni Field, and has only lost two games on the road. She also said that the team has a steady fan base that travels with the team too.
For Morency, it is important that the team grows as both individual soccer players but more importantly as teammates.
“We can’t perform when we don’t work together collectively,” Morency said. “That’s when you can turn loss or a win into a victory.”
Burgbacher, who will be graduating in December, stated that she hopes the team will continue to grow. She said that in the spring Coach Paulsen guided the team in a process of creating core values for the program.
Though it was a long process, the girls realized how important it was to set a standard that could be met and to have goals applicable to both life and soccer.
“Since the spring, the culture of our team has changed in such a positive way,” Burgbacher said. “We seek to glorify God in everything we do whether that’s on or off the field. We are building more than just a winning soccer program. We are building a Christ-centered soccer program.”
Burgbacher said that she hopes the soccer team continues to grow in that direction.
“Our fifth core value is ‘be the legacy’,” Burgbacher said. “I would love to see the program continue to put Christ about all and play for an audience of One.”