Spartans Open Exhibition Slate with 3-0 Win Against Valparaiso
8/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Aug. 16, 2006
EAST LANSING, Mich. - A goal and an assist each from freshman Lauren Hill (Northville, Mich./Northville) and two assists from junior Maureen Pawlak (Commerce Township, Mich./Novi) paced the Michigan State women's soccer team as it opened its 2006 preseason with a 3-0 exhibition win against 2005 Mid-Continent Conference champion Valparaiso at Old College Field on a sunny Wednesday afternoon.
Pawlak assisted on the Spartans' first tally with a cross from the right corner, as Hill dented the twine on a shot from six yards out in the 23rd minute. The score stayed close until the second half, when sophomore Kristi Timar (Novi, Mich./Novi) added an insurance cushion on a score assisted by Hill and Pawlak.
"Today's game shows the value of effort and intensity. We didn't have it in the first half, and it showed in our play," 16th-year head coach Tom Saxton said. "The second half was a different story."
The Spartans added another goal in the 73rd minute as senior captain Jenee Witherspoon (Midland, Mich./Midland) hooked up with freshman Lauren Sinacola (Rochester, Mich./Adams) on a cross to round out the scoring.
The Spartans dominated the Crusaders on offense, posting six of their 11 shots on goal, while the Crusaders directed only two of their six shots on target.
True to the preseason, Saxton took a look at nearly every available Spartan, as 24 Spartans saw action in the game, with goalkeepers Lindsey Wrege (Portage, Mich./Central) and Ashley Crandall (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) each getting minutes in the second half after Nicole Galas (Sterling Heights, Mich./Bishop Foley), who accounted for both Spartan saves in the win, worked the first 62 minutes of the shutout.
"It's so early in the preseason with just starting practice last Friday, that I'm just looking to evaluate the newcomers and see which ones can help our lineup," Saxton said. "We had several solid efforts from the newcomers today and that was the bright spot."
The Spartans conclude their exhibition schedule on Friday as they host SoccerBuzz.com's seventh-ranked Virginia at 4 p.m. at Old College Field. Admission is free.
