Photo by Leah Husemoen
Photo by Leah Husemoen

Women's Soccer secures tie with No. 8 UW-Whitewater

MEQUON, Wis. – The Concordia University Wisconsin Women's Soccer team played the No. 8 team in the country to a 2-2 tie Wednesday afternoon in the Falcons 2017 home opener. CUW built a 2-0 lead at halftime before No. 8 UW-Whitewater scored two second-half goals in the non-conference draw.

THE BASICS
- Final Score:
Concordia Wisconsin 2, UW-Whitewater 2
- Location: Fitting Field – Mequon, Wisconsin
- Records: CUW 0-2-2; UWW 3-0-2

HOW IT HAPPENED
- CUW scored its first two goals of the season in the opening 45 minutes of play. First, junior Nicole Ciesielczyk (Waukesha, Wis.) struck in the 32nd minute with a strong finish from about 18 yards out. She took a pass from junior Ashley Johnson (Chesterfield, Mich.) and buried one in the top right corner of the goal for a 1-0 lead.

- Just over 11 minutes later, Kayla Schlosser (Germantown, Wis.) had a near identical goal from Ciesielczyk's, hers just coming from right to left. Schlosser was also a little further out, burying her shot from about 25 yards for the 2-0 advantage.

- UW-Whitewater responded in the second half with two goals, the first coming just six minutes in the half. Anna Boyd tallied the first Warhawks score while Karina Rosales recorded the equalizer in the 71st minute.

- Both teams had chances in the remaining 40-plus minutes (final 20 in regulation and overtimes) but neither could convert the winning goal. CUW had two shots go off the crossbar and one off the right post in the overtime sessions.

- Tabitha Ortiz (Plainfield, Ill.) had a strong match for the Falcons, recording eight saves against a talented unit in the Warhawks. Six of her saves came in the second half and one came in double overtime.

- Sara Klimisch was the goalie of record for UW-Whitewater as she came in at halftime and did not allow a goal over 65 minutes of play, finishing with two saves.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The Falcons came into the match with no goals over its first three contests. CUW has played a difficult schedule to date and a tie with the No. 8 ranked team is certainly a promising step moving forward.

- Schlosser now has three goals in three career matches against the Warhawks. She scored two in a 5-1 win two seasons ago, the Falcons only win over UW-Whitewater in program history.

UP NEXT
- The Falcons will visit Lake Forest for a non-conference match Saturday afternoon. CUW and the Foresters are set for a 1 p.m. start.