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It has been five years since the St. Olaf men’s and women’s soccer teams qualified for the MIAC playoffs in the same season. For the Ole women, it was the last time they qualified at all. Both squads took significant steps towards changing that this week, notching important conference wins.
The sole contest of the week for the Ole women produced a result that had not occurred in several players’ lifetimes: a win over Macalester.
The Scots struck first in the 32nd minute on a chilly Saturday afternoon to take a 1-0 edge.
However, a quick response by Christine Barringer ’13 tied the game, as she knocked in her first collegiate goal. Lauren Babcock ’13 recorded the assist on the play.
The game remained deadlocked throughout the second half until Lindsay Howard ’12 set up Deanne Schmidt ’12 for the go-ahead goal with just over two minutes remaining. St. Olaf held for the 2-1 win, keeping them in third place in the MIAC.
Wednesday’s game looked like it might develop into a blowout early, but nearly turned into a devastating loss for the St. Olaf men’s team, as they sprinted to a 3-0 lead before holding off St. Mary’s 3-2.
Jack Pueringer ’13 tallied an unassisted goal to give the Oles a 1-0 at the half before John Zietlow ’11 scored twice to push St. Olaf’s advantage to three goals. The winless Cardinals picked up two goals in the final 12 minutes to cut the margin to one before time expired.
The Ole men were dealt a 3-1 setback Saturday at Macalester, with Pueringer scoring the lone goal, but remain tied for second in the conference and in position to make a deep run in the postseason.
“Our goal at the beginning of the season was to not only make the playoffs, but win the MIAC,” Zietlow said. “Another goal of ours is to make a strong run in the NCAA tournament after the conference season is done. We have the players and the mentality to do so, now we just need to execute.”
The Ole women play St. Catherine Saturday at home before visiting
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