Webster Women Capture SLIAC Soccer Crown

Jordan Fosburgh tallied two goals and added an assist as the Webster University women's soccer team scored four unanswered goals to beat Principia College 4-1 to win the championship of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament.

 The Gorloks earned the SLIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III national tournament with the win Saturday (Nov. 9) at St. Louis Soccer Park. The Gorloks will find out who, when and where they play in the national tournament Monday (Nov. 11) at 12:30 p.m. CST, as the NCAA streams its selection show live on NCAA.com. Webster will be appearing in its 10th national tournament and second in as many years. The Gorloks have captured six SLIAC tournament championships, all of which have come in the last nine years. 

After Principia, the SLIAC tournament's No. 3 seed, jumped out to an early lead, No. 1-seeded Webster recorded four consecutive goals in a 20-minute span. Less than two minutes before halftime, freshman Lauren Nuelle (St. Louis, MO / St. Joseph's Academy) one-timed a rocket from 25 yards out that ripped the back of the net for her fourth goal of the season. Less than two minutes after halftime, Fosburgh (Collinsville, IL / Collinsville), a senior, put the Gorloks up for good with her 10th goal and fourth game-winning goal this season. Fosburgh has registered at least one goal in the last six games. 

Fosburgh tallied yet again in the 62nd minute and contributed an assist on Webster's fourth goal, by sophomore Lauren Pratt (St. Louis, MO / Incarnate Word), to collect her career-high fifth point of the game. After the game, Fosburgh was chosen as the conference tournament's Most Valuable Player. She also scored the game-winning goal in Webster's tournament semifinal win. Pratt's goal was her fourth in five games, and her 28 points (eight goals, 12 assists) rank her second on the team and tied for fourth among SLIAC players. 

Junior Jessica Davis (Belleville, IL / Belleville West) made two saves as Webster outshot the visitors 14-7. The Gorloks have won 11 straight games and outscored their opponents 58-4 during that stretch. Joining Fosburgh on the all-tournament team were Kristin Montgomery (St. Louis, MO / Duchesne), Kristen Muehlenfeld (Quincy, IL / Quincy), and Amy Schield (Belleville, IL / Belleville West). Webster has tallied 89 goals this season (4.24 per game) while conceding 12 goals (0.57 per game).

Entering the SLIAC tournament, the Gorloks had the sixth-highest scoring offense and the 32nd-best goals-against average nationally in NCAA Division III. Webster's .905 won-loss-tied percentage is one of the top-10 percentages in Division III this season and the second-highest percentage in program history, behind only the 2001 team that went 18-1-1 (.925 won-loss-tied percentage). The Gorloks (19-2 overall, 9-0 SLIAC) set a program record for wins in a season, as they surpassed the 18-win '01 squad. 

Following the championship game was the announcement of the 2013 SLIAC Women's Soccer Tournament All-Tournament team. Congratulations to the following followers for making the All-Tournament team:

All-Tournament Team (*denotes tournament MVP)
Ava Johnson, Fontbonne
Allison Weber, Fontbonne
Tymber Gabbert, Greenville
Kelsey Panzau, Greenville
Hayley MacWilliams, Principia
Rachel Perea, Principia
Carlie Sanderude, Principia
Jordan Fosburgh, Webster*
Kristin Montgomery, Webster
Kristen Muehlenfeld, Webster
Amy Schield, Webster

Courtesy of Josh Sellmeyer, Webster sports information assistant.