Cajuns Season Ends With Shutout Loss To Denver

Wednesday, November 5

Bowling Green, Ky.

N/A

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

Denver

Cajuns Season Ends With Shutout Loss To Denver

11/5/2003 12:00:00 AM | Soccer

Box Score

Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2003

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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Jenni Harris recorded a hat trick leading the University of Denver to a 5-0 win over Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns women's soccer team here Wednesday morning in the opening round of the 2003 Hardee's Sun Belt Conference Tournament at the WKU Soccer Complex.

With the loss, UL Lafayette saw its fourth season in program history come to a close. The Cajuns ended with a 6-13-1 record and remain winless in four SBC Tournament appearances.

"I was very proud of the effort my team put out today," said UL Lafayette coach Dave Poggi. "It was probably the toughest we played all season.

"We drew the toughest seed and for 81 minutes limited them to 2 goals which were the result of them capitalizing on mistakes."

The Pioneers (16-3), the defending tournament champions, advance to the tournament semifinals at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 6 against the winner of the Western Kentucky/South Alabama match.

DU struck quick with two first-half goals to secure its fifth straight win over the Cajuns.

Lleane Grimditch opened the scoring at the 9:38 mark with help from Maggie Kirchhoff. Harris then recorded her first of three goals on the day in the 18th minute to give the Pioneers a 2-0 advantage.

UL Lafayette's defense was able to regroup and contain the Pioneers attack for the remainder of the opening half and the first 35 minutes of the second frame.

The Cajuns defense stayed aggressive for most of the second half and was able to counter the Pioneers attack keeping the difference at two goals.

However, DU's pressure eventually caught up to the Cajuns as was evident by a three-goal barrage in the final nine minutes that produced the final margin.

Ashley Donnell ended a 64-minute stalemate in the 81st minute. Donnell accepted a cross from freshman Elise Mascitelli and with the goalkeeper out of position, sent a ball into the back of the net for her first career goal.

Harris finished off the scoring with her final two goals of the day in the 83rd and 89th minute to complete the hat trick.

Denver controlled the ball all match, outshooting the Ragin' Cajuns 22-2 while preventing them from recording a shot on goal.

"They out-shot us but the majority of them came from a safe distance in front of the penalty area," Poggi said. "When they did get in behind us the back line recovered or Liza (Preseault) snuffed out any real danger.

"In addition we spent the last 28 minutes down a player," Poggi said referring to Natalie Hanks' red card in the 64th minute. "Natalie played her heart out and just got frustrated with some inconsistent calls from the linesman."

"The scoreline of this game didn't reflect today's effort," Poggi added. "After the third goal I substituted several players so that any further outbreaks of frustration wouldn't be given the opportunity to materialize."

Liza Preseault came up with 13 saves in goal for Louisiana-Lafayette while Denver's Danielle Wiley collected her ninth shutout of the season.

MATCH SUMMARY
Louisiana-Lafayette vs. Denver
2003 Hardee's Sun Belt Conference Tournament Quarterfinals
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2003
Site: Bowling Green, Ky. (WKU Soccer Field)
Attendance: 74

Goals by period 1 2 T
UL Lafayette (6-13-1) 0 0 0
Denver (16-3) 2 3 5

SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 9:38 DU Grimditch, Lleane (Kirchhoff, Maggie)
2. 17:11 DU Harris, Jenni (Brunkhardt, Diana)
3. 81:18 DU Donnell, Ashley (Mascitelli, Elise)
4. 82:26 DU Harris, Jenni (Weintraub, Danielle; Norwood, Jamie)
5. 88:23 DU Harris, Jenni (McCallum, Carlynn)

Shots: UL Lafayette 2, DU 22
Shots on Goal: UL Lafayette 0, DU 18
Saves: UL Lafayette 13 (Preseault), DU 0
Fouls: UL Lafayette 16, DU 17
Corner Kicks: UL Lafayette 0, DU 5
Cautions: UL Lafayette 3 (Schwindt, Lauren 34:50; Brown, Jenny 49:45; Webb, Lindsey 53:26), DU 1 (Weintraub, Dainelle 59:02)
Ejections: UL Lafayette 1 (Hanks, Natalie 63:10), Denver 0
Offsides: UL Lafayette 2, DU 9

-- Ragin' Cajuns --