Sophomore midfielder Paige Swaw and Junior forward Cami Butler at Deaton Field SXU Athletics
After a disappointing 1-5 start to the season the Saint Xavier University (SXU) women’s soccer team have now found their stride in conference play.
To open up conference play in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) the Cougars were able to snap their five game losing streak in a 2-2 tie against the University of St. Francis.
They would continue that moment onto the next game on the road against Olivet Nazarene University (Ill.) and although it wasn’t a win the Cougars still managed to hold it to a 1-1 tie, looking like a completely different team from the first half of the season.
Their offense seemed to click during this next stretch, as in their following three games the Cougars have connected for 18 goals while conceding just two.
This stretch started when they hosted Calumet College of St. Joseph (Ind.), resulting in a dominating 5-0 win as they collected just their second win of the season.
The offensive surge didn’t stop there as they secured a 4-0 win over Mount Mary University at home as they celebrated Senior Day.
In the following game the Cougars would go on and double their goal total during this stretch in a blowout 9-2 win over Governors State University on the road. This win resulted in various season highs which included points (26), goals (9), assists (8), and shots on goal (20).
This exciting run to begin conference play has moved them up to third place in their conference just behind Olivet Nazarene and Indiana Northwest.
It’s no surprise that this stretch has resulted in a spike in their offensive numbers, the team is now averaging 2.36 goals per game, 26 goals on the year, 13.9 shots per game, and a shots on goal percentage of 0.556.
It’s been both sides of the ball for the Cougars that has them seeing success at the moment. As much as the offense has contributed to this run it’s also the defense who have been dialed in as well. In the CCAC the Cougars sit in fourth in saves with 90, third in shutouts with three, second in goals per game, and points with 72.
Sophomore midfielder Paige Swaw leads the team in goals scored with seven after having just one through eight games on the season. Swaw connected for six goals in the last three games, including a hat trick against Governors State University.
On the defensive side, senior goalkeeper Natalie Dybas now has 89 saves on the year(a career high), a save percentage of 0.824, and average of 1.96 for goals allowed.
The Cougars will look to keep this momentum when they head to South Bend, Ind. to face off against Indiana University at South Bend on Oct 10.
With a 4-5-2 record SXU has just five games remaining in the regular season leaving each one more important than the last, can the Cougars finish the job and complete an astonishing turnaround to their season?
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