Oct. 16, 2004

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB women's soccer team fell to conference-rival Saint Louis on Friday, 4-1, at West Campus Field in a match that was played much tighter than the final score indicated.

The Blazers (8-5-1, 4-2-0) lost for the first time since dropping a 1-0 decision to Louisville on Sept. 26 in Birmingham. UAB could have tied the Billikens for the overall conference lead, but Saint Louis raced out to a 3-0 halftime lead and held on for the three-goal victory. The Billikens improved to 10-3-1 and 6-0-0 in C-USA play, maintaining their spot atop the conference standings.

The game though, was very evenly-played and the final score was not indicative of the way the match was played. The Blazers had several scoring chances throughout the game, but they were time and time again thwarted by spectacular play by Saint Louis goalkeeper Amanda Martin.

Saint Louis' Jamie Perry put the Billikens up 1-0 at the 30:25 mark of the first half as she took a pass from teammate Dee Guempel and scored when UAB goalkeeper Katie Forbis bobbled the ball after making the save, and could not corral it as it left her grasp and scooted over the goal line.

Cassi Winchell scored her fourth goal of the season with 17:49 remaining in the first period following a corner kick, with the assist going again to Guempel. Winchell sent a header to the right post, which was deflected by the UAB defense, but the official ruled that the ball had already crossed the line for a goal. UAB defender Suzanna LaMotte appeared to have cleared the ball on a header away from the goal, but it was ruled that LaMotte was inside the goal line, although it looked as if she was standing on the line and had headed the shot out.

Guempel got into the scoring act in the 32nd minute as she added a goal to her two first-half assists. The goal was her sixth of the season, and once again came in unorthodox fashion. Guempel and UAB's Briana McCarty fought for control of the ball near the corner of the field before Guempel cleared McCarty out of the way and took control of the ball. She then beat Forbis to the goal after Forbis fell to the ground and Guempel scored to give Saint Louis the 3-0 lead at the half. Forbis came out wide of the goal to try to clear the ball away but whiffed when she tried to kick it, and fell down. Forbis got back up and attempted to defend the shot, but by that time Guempel had a favorable angle and was able to score.

Freshman Jill Porto scored the Blazers' lone goal in the 51st minute, her fourth of the season, as she snuck a shot past Saint Louis goalkeeper Amanda Martin into the back of the net to make it 3-1. The Billikens increased their lead to the final margin of 4-1 as Maureen Hughes notched her fifth goal of the season, with Guempel once again assisting. UAB goalkeeper Julie MacFarlane dove and missed a block attempt on a ball, and Hughes slipped it past her into the net.

Saint Louis, which yielded its first goal in conference play this season, took 21 shots to UAB's 20, and each team finished with 12 shots on goal. Martin recorded 10 saves for Saint Louis while UAB split time at goalkeeper as Forbis played the first 36:44, making three saves, and fellow sophomore Julie MacFarlane recorded two saves in her 53:16 of action.

"It is an odd day when you take 20 shots and lose 4-1, and the score could have easily been 4-1 in our favor," said UAB head coach Paul Harbin.

"Their goalkeeper Amanda Martin had a great day and we could not seem to catch a break," said Harbin.

Porto led UAB with seven total shots with four coming on goal. The Blazers out-shot the Billikens, 10-7 in the second half, one that was controlled mainly by UAB. Martin made two outstanding saves on two of Porto's shots in the game.

Senior Jenny Rynders was involved in two interesting plays in the game. Late in the first half she was pulled down in front of the goal by Martin, which looked as if it would merit a penalty kick, but no call was made. Rynders also had a goal called back late in the match as offsides was called against UAB.

The Blazers will face Memphis, coming off a 4-0 upset at the hands of USF on Friday in Tampa, Fla., on Sunday at 2 p.m. at West Campus Field. The match will pit a pair of team with identical 4-2-0 conference marks, so the game has vital importance in the overall conference race. Louisville (4-1-1) defeated Morehead State in non-conference play on Friday and is just ahead of UAB and Memphis in the C-USA standings.