DES MOINES, Iowa – Drake women's soccer picked up its second 2-0 win in as many matches as the Bulldogs took care of another non-conference opponent on Sunday afternoon. The Bulldogs got a pair of second half scores to blank St. Thomas in the second of five straight home tilts.
"Today's challenge was going to be whether we could get up for a hot Sunday afternoon game the same way we did Thursday night under the lights," Drake head coach
Lindsey Horner said. "Our level of focus and willingness to carry the game and not get impatient was quite impressive."
The first half featured plenty of back-and-forth action, but the Bulldogs controlled the pace. Drake outshot UST 5-0 and tried two corner kicks to the Tommies' none. St. Thomas also committed 10 fouls while the host Dogs were whistled for just four.
Halftime came and went without a tally on either side, but Drake changed that just three minutes into the second stanza.
Angela Gutierrez put the Bulldogs on top for the second game in a row after an assist from
Alma Beaton. It was Gutierrez's second goal of the year.
Drake nearly doubled its lead in the 80th minute when
Alexa Aylward chipped in a
Zoey Mahoney corner offering, but video review disallowed the goal due to a Bulldog foul. The reversal charged St. Thomas up a touch, but Drake eventually slammed the door when
Isabella Balsley was assisted by Mahoney and Gutierrez in the 84th.
St. Thomas attempted just three total shots, one of which was on target. That try by Sofia Englund in the 75th minute was stopped by
Kate Hopma for her only save of the match.
"I'm very pleased with how we not only dominated possession but found different wat to create and score goals," Horner added. "Our defenders won so many first contacts and our midfield cleaned up [a lot of] 50/50 moments. This was a very professional and mature set of performances from our group."
The victory evened Drake's record at 2-2 this season with another home match on deck. The Bulldogs will host Grand View on Wednesday night in a crosstown showdown starting at 7:30 p.m.
