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SAN ANGELO, Texas – The St. Edward's Women's Soccer team took the field in the second round of the NCAA Regional Tournament to take on top-seeded Angelo State. After an early weather delay in the first half, the Hilltoppers took care of business and came away with a 1-0 victory to advance to the Sweet 16.
 
Both teams looked to open up play on a strong note and Angelo State had three shots in the first 20 minutes, but LORRIE SANTOY came away with two saves while the other shot didn't challenge her. JENNIFER BOUDREAU found some space in the middle of the field and rifled a left footed shot in the ninth minute that was saved by goalkeeper Shantel Wittke.
 
In the 24th minute, lighting strikes forced officials to clear the field and a 90-minute delay ensued. The Hilltoppers regrouped and came out firing as they outshot Angelo State by a 7-2 margin. Boudreau's quick chip in the box was saved just 45 seconds after the restart and ARI GARCIA's shot attempt that curled in towards goal was handled by Wittke to keep the game scoreless.
 
Angelo State tried to counterattack in the 26^th minute and a three-on-three break ensued. The Hilltopper backline played a beautiful offside trap to draw the referee's whistle. St. Edward's allowed two cornerkicks before half, however the RamBelles failed to get a shot attempt from either opportunity.
 
At halftime, each team looked to regroup and try to build some momentum to get the decisive goal. However, it wouldn't be too much longer before the combination of VIKTORIA MALMROS and JENNIFER BOUDREAU would come away with the goal of the season.
 
Malmros sprinted from midfield to a loose ball on the right side of the field, which an Angelo State defender was trying to corral. Malmros put her right foot to the ball and it sailed into the middle of the box. The Rambelles defense was shuffling to get back from the unexpected pass and Boudreau set her sights on the area. After the first bounce rolled off of an Angelo State player and into the air, Boudreau flashed across the box going left to right and sent a header into the upper right corner of the goal to give the Hilltoppers a 1-0 lead.
 
With the advantage in hand, St. Edward's clamped down defensively as the RamBelles fired off as many shots as possible in the remaining 30 minutes of play. However, the Hilltopper midfield which included strong efforts from SABRINA CONE, ARI GARCIA, and VALENCIA MOBLEY made things difficult for Angelo State as the trio came away with numerous loose balls, intercepted passes across the field and fought for every header despite the RamBelles size advantage.
 
LORRIE SANTOY, who picked up her second clean sheet of the weekend, came up with the save of the day in the 75^th minute as a cornerkick from the right side found its way through to a RamBelle player on the left post. As she fired away from just three yards out, Santoy dove in front of her and within a split second threw her arms up to block the shot and preserve the lead. 
 
As time dwindled down, St. Edward's started to overtake a fatigued RamBelle midfield and as the horn sounded another celebration ensued as the Hilltoppers laid claim to yet another Sweet 16 berth.
 
Head Coach Nick Cowell spoke of his team's performance in the postgame press conference. "Angelo State had a fantastic season and we knew it was going to be a tough game, especially since we had to play our first round game Friday night. I thought our team recovered well from our overtime win on Friday and you couldn't tell that we were the team who had played once already, which is a testament to our team's fitness and to our training staff for the work we did throughout the weekend." Cowell went on to say, "We nullified a very dynamic team for much of the game, and getting another shutout says a lot about our entire defense. I'm very proud of the girls, and the way they applied themselves, because we knew we would get chances to score eventually."
 
Boudreau recapped her goal and her thoughts about the upcoming game against Dallas Baptist. "The ball was slippery, so I knew there was an opportunity that the defender might make a mistake. I made the run and was able to get my head on it to send it back post and I was really excited to score." She went on to say, "I wasn't here when they made it to Sweet 16 last time, so this is a new experience to me, but I'm so excited to do it with my team."
 
Senior captain KATIE DONAHUE reiterated that her team's defense was the key to winning the game. "They have a very good front line and they are very dynamic, which I think is a testament to our backline. We stayed tight on them and refused to let them turn on us, which is something that we knew we needed to do. I thought LIBBY FISH had a great game out wide for us and of course Lorrie came up with some huge saves. I'm really proud of us and we had some freshmen really step up like Sabrina and Juliana."
 
Cowell ended the press conference with some final thoughts about the Hilltoppers upcoming schedule. "I think our team has deserved a spot in the Sweet 16. They've had a long season that has been up and down, but we've really grown together as the season has gone on. I feel like we are peaking at the right time and I know DBU is a great team and we have a lot of respect for them. We know it'll be a great game so we'll hope to do the Heartland Conference proud. Having two top teams from our conference make it out of the region says a lot."
 
St. Edward's moves on to play Dallas Baptist this Thursday in Bellingham, Wash. to see who will move on to the Elite 8. Check the website for more information this week.