Nov. 15, 2002

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - In soccer, the final statistics don't always tell the true story. Unfortunately that old adage held true for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's soccer team as they fell to No. 5 Pepperdine 2-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament here Friday (Nov. 15). Despite playing evenly on the final stat sheet, the Waves scored a goal late in each half to advance to the second round of the tourney to face the winner of the Marquette/Wisconsin game. UWM ends its Horizon League Championship season 11-6-5 while Pepperdine moves on with a 17-1-2 overall mark.

On a cold, windy, and eventually snowy evening, UWM seemed to control play in the early going. The Panthers had the West Coast Waves scrambling early on thanks to some strong midfield play by seniors Maggie Suminski and Katie Kubacki. Each team took three shots in the first half while registering one corner kick apiece.

The game appeared to be headed towards halftime in a scoreless tie but the quick-striking Waves grabbed a goal in the final minute and ten seconds of the stanza. Janelle Hillseth hooked a ball under the cross bar with 43:57 to give Pepperdine the 1-0 lead. Hillseth corraled the ball after after assists from Jenna Fodor and Mary Stuart.

"The goal late in the half kind of put us back on our heels a little bit," Suminski said. "We really controlled play for parts of the half once we finally got comfortable. Unfortunately, we had a little defensive breakdown right before the half."

With the snowflakes falling heavily on Valley Fields, the two teams played a nearly even second half. Each team had numerous chances in the stanza to tally a goal but the opposing defenses thwarted any forward effort. Milwaukee played three dangerous corner kicks into the Pepperdine penalty box but could not find the net.

With just over 15 minutes remaining in the game UWM narrowly missed tying the game on a golden opportunity. Suminski lofted a long-range free kick from nearly 40 yards out while forward Maria Iaizzo ran under the ball. The freshman, who went inside the penalty area unmarked, just missed the equalizer as her header sailed wide of the net by a foot.

Milwaukee continued to press offensively yet couldn't put any scoring chances together. Meanwhile, with UWM pressing forward, Pepperdine took advantage of an errant clear and sealed the game with its second goal. Megan Woods took a Jenna Fodor pass from 40 yards away and blasted a 15-yard breakaway shot past keeper Molly Schneider to make it 2-0 Pepperdine at the 87:10 mark. The Waves withstood one last UWM chance and advanced to the second round as the tourney's No. 3 overall seed.

"Pepperdine is a very good team that plays quickly and has great technical skill and ability," UWM head coach Michael Moynihan said. "But, we played with them statistically all game. It was an awesome year for us. We really grew as our leaders took control, and we had freshman and young players who were willing to learn and improve. To play the No. 5 team in the country this tough says a lot about our team."

UWM graduates six seniors as Suminski, Kubacki, Carrie Durand, Mary Duffy, Amy Oechsner, and Emily Jessen played their last games in a Panther uniform. Next season, the two-time defending league champs will return 20 letterwinners including All-League performers Molly Schneider, Elizabeth Chudy, and Brenda Andrews.