ARKADELPHIA- A consistent heat index of over 100 degrees did nothing to stop Ouachita Baptist in an 8-0 victory over LeTourneau in women’s soccer on Saturday in Arkadelphia.
While it looked to be a contested battle on both ends for the first 24 minutes, Ouachita (2-2) used a combined effort from junior Beth Wendl and freshman Morgan Pitchford to outscore LeTourneau (0-4) with five-straight goals to close out the first half. In what turned out to be a strong offensive effort for the Lady Tigers, it was a defensive effort that didn’t allow a single shot from LeTourneau that also took center stage in the key to Ouachita returning to .500 on the season.
Wendl started the scoring offensive onslaught with a goal at 24:08 on an assist from sophomore Lauren Hatch. Not to be outdone, Pitchford followed with a goal less than five minutes later at 28:45, as sophomore Sarah McKimmey provided the assist. The spotlight then turned back to Wendl, as the Plano, Texas native recorded her second goal of the match at 32:54 off an assist from junior teammate Haley Whisenhunt for a 3-0 advantage.
It didn’t take long for Pitchford to answer the challenge to keep pace with Wendl, matching her with a second goal at 34:41, as Wendl aided the play by providing the assist. It was only fitting that just before half at 42:56, Wendl came away with the final goal, a third of the half and stretching the lead for Ouachita to 5-0.
In second half action, freshman Cara Smith was introduced to her first goal of her collegiate career, scoring at 51:49 with freshman Angel Palacios recording her second assist of the season. At 71:50, defender Haley Whisenhunt decided to join in on the scoring, recording her first goal of 2010, as McKimmey assisted on the play.
Smith put the final stamp on the victory with her second goal of the match at the 90 minute mark, with Hatch providing her second assist of the match.
In the past two matches for the Lady Tigers, Wendl has been nothing short of incredible offensively, as the junior has recorded four goals and four assists to lead Ouachita to back-to-back victories after starting the season at 0-2.
Senior keeper Whitley Hoppe posted the first shutout of the season for Ouachita, playing all 90 minutes and bringing her season record to the same as Ouachita at 2-2.
The Lady Tigers return to the field on Sunday, Sept. 12 against Texas A&M-International at Richland beginning at 1 p.m.
