Lady Coyotes open season with 5-0 win over Concordia
By: David Toelle, KWU Sports Information

Kat Benton (20) celebrates with a teammate after a goal in the second half of KWU's 5-0 win over Concordia (Neb.).

It looked like the Kansas Wesleyan Lady Coyotes picked up just where they left off in the 2006 season, as the No. 22 ranked Lady Coyotes opened the 2007 season with a 5-0 rout over the Concordia (Neb.) Bulldogs on Tuesday night at Martin Stadium.

It only took 17 minutes for Wesleyan to get things started as Eliana Parada took a rebound of her first shot that got past Concordia keeper Sara Webb and tapped into an open net to put the Lady Coyotes on top 1-0.

Wesleyan had another great scoring chance just two minutes later when April Smith went one-on-one with Webb after taking a pass from Kat Benton. Webb made a great diving save to keep KWU off the board.

KWU would not find the net the remainder of the half, but opened things up in the second with four big goals, including two from Kat Benton.

Benton’s first came at the 52:18 mark, when she took a short pass from Parada at the top the 18-yard box and fired it home.

Wesleyan had another chance less than 30 seconds later when Janna Macy just missed the net after playing a deflected shot.

The Lady Coyotes’ third goal of the night came when Macy took a cross from Benton across the 18 box and was wide open and found the net at the 58:31 mark.

Benton scored Wesleyan’s fourth goal at the 61:33 mark on a free kick from just outside the box. Her shot played perfectly over the defensive wall of Concordia, and her shot found paydirt.

Wesleyan used a corner kick from Megan Couch to score its final tally of the night. Couch’s pass into the box found Holly Ambrecht, who put it in the back of the net at the 72:06 mark.

Wesleyan (1-0) had numerous chances in the second half, including less than a minute after Ambrecht’s goal, when April Smith fired from short range, but was unable to connect.

The Lady Coyotes’ final chance came with two minutes left when Taylor Aglio slipped inside the six-yard box but her shot was saved by Concordia’s Webb.

Ashley Trinidad and Kelli Beatty split the shutout in goal for the Lady Coyotes, as Wesleyan only allowed one shot by Concordia for the entire game, while tallying 35 shots as a team.

Webb gave up all five goals for Concordia (0-1), while Dana McClain had the Bulldogs’ only shot for the night.

The Lady Coyotes begin a six-match road trip on Thursday when they travel to Baldwin City to take on Baker with kick-off scheduled for 6:00 p.m.

-- KWU SI --