Oct. 2, 2002

Box Score

DENVER -The University of Denver women's soccer team celebrated a three-point performance by junior forward Mychael Movius (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) and iced the opposing attack to earn a chilling, 2-0, victory over visiting Wyoming in a non-conference match on Wednesday afternoon (Oct. 2) at Pioneer Field. The Pioneers improve to 7-1-2 overall with their fifth straight win and improve to 7-0-1 all-time against the Cowgirls. Wyoming suffers its second straight loss and falls to 3-6-1 on the year.

After a scoreless first half, Movius broke the tie early in the second with her first tally of the season. The goal was set up when line mate Kerri Weaver (Littleton, Colo.) accepted a drop pass from Camile Flenniken (Northglenn, Colo.) near the left sideline and drove towards the corner. She juked a defender at the edge of the 18-yard box and sent a low crossing pass in front of the goal, which found the foot of Movius streaking towards the net. Movius beat Wyoming keeper Lori Scheider to the ball and chipped it into the near corner to put Denver on the board in the 56th minute.

"I was just in the right place at the right time," said Movius about her game-winner. "Weaver made a great move to get by the defender and sent a perfect crossing pass into the box, I was just glad to be in position to make a play on it."

The Pioneers continued to harass Wyoming's defense in the second half and peppered Scheider with eight shots before celebrating a goal by Katie Antongiovanni (Bakersfield, Calif.) in the 86th minute. The senior forward combined with Movius on a textbook give-and-go play near the right corner of the box and finished the play with a low line drive into the far corner of the net to seal the victory for the Pioneers, 2-0, and record her team-leading fifth goal of the season.

Denver's defense was relentless against the Cowgirl attack and stifled every counter coming into the defensive zone. The Pioneers denied Wyoming a shot in the first half and surrendered just two attempts in the second. Senior keeper Erica Izard (Fort Collins, Colo.) needed to make just one save to record her fifth shutout of the season and 35th of her career. Denver dominated Wyoming in every statistical category including shots, 12-2 and corner kicks, 8-1.

"This was a great win for us at home, especially considering the miserable conditions this afternoon," said Denver head coach Jeff Hooker. "We looked a little nervous in the first half and Wyoming took advantage with some early pressure, but we were able to cut them off and counter with chances of our own. We had a tough time with the wet grass connecting some of our passes, but the team did what they had to do down the stretch to win the game. I thought we looked much sharper in the second half and made some great plays in the final third, which resulted in two goals for us."

The Pioneers will put their eight-game home shutout streak on the line this Friday (Oct. 2) when they host conference foe North Texas in a Sun Belt showdown at 4 p.m. The Pioneers are 1-1-1 all-time against the Lady Eagles and won the last meeting, 2-1, in the championship game of the 2001 SBC Tournament. First place is on the line as both squads are undefeated in league play.