Women’s soccer team defeats DePaul

Despite the rainy conditions, the women’s soccer team battled DePaul to a 4-0 victory Tuesday night at Lakeside Field.

The Panthers responded to the Blue Demon pressure and handed DePaul its first loss of the season.

“It gave us motivation knowing they were undefeated,” Eastern head coach Steve Ballard said. “When the game starts, it makes no difference to them who they are playing. They just go out and play.”

The scoring began in the 18th minute of the first half on a through ball sent from freshman forward Katie Siwicke to sophomore forward Beth Liesen. Liesen chipped the ball over the oncoming DePaul goalkeeper for her sixth goal of the season.

Despite DePaul outshooting Eastern 11-4, the Panthers still held on to their 1-0 lead at the half.

“Not playing for eight days was hard on us,” Ballard said. “It took us a half to get going and start playing our game.”

With Eastern in the lead, it saw a scare in the second half when a Blue Demon forward found herself in front of the net alone with the ball. Eastern’s defense relied on freshman goalkeeper Lindsay Dechert, who dove for the ball and came away with the save.

“Playing in the rain is hard because the ball skips more,” Dechert said.

“You just have to get a good grip on the ball.”

Dechert remained under the net for the entire game, earning her first career shutout – a first for the Panthers this season.

The Panthers took the game out of the Blue Demons’ reach with seven minutes left to play.

Liesen sent a cross that sophomore forward Teri LaRoche headed, which found the back of the net.

With less than five minutes left in the game, the Panthers added two more goals from Liesen and junior forward Cara LeMaster.

Ballard said this game made a statement, but they still need to go into every game with respect for their opponents.

Not only did the team score four goals against the Blue Demons, but they also prevented DePaul’s strong offensive attack from scoring.

“I think (the defense) did very well,” Dechert said. “They stayed organized and did not make mistakes.”

Liesen added that this was a huge confidence booster after being off for a long time.

After canceling this weekend’s games in Hawaii, the Panthers will now prepare for an added game Sunday at Middle Tennessee.