Photo by Natalia Ahrens
McPherson, Kan. – The McPherson College women's soccer team came up a little short on Senior Day, falling to intra-county rival Bethany College 4-0.
The Bulldogs were behind the eight ball right out of the gate and appeared to be several steps behind their counterparts from up north. Bethany controlled the flow of the game and the Bulldogs were left to chase the Swedes around the pitch most of the game.
The Bulldogs struggled defensively, consistently allowing the Swedes to play the ball from the midfield in behind the back line to their strikers. Christie Silber (Sr. Simi Valley, Calif.), did her best against the onslaught, but there was not much she could do when the Swedes kept coming at her 1 v 1.
It didn't take long for the Swedes to find the back of the net. Just four minutes into the first half, Melissa Estrada was led in behind the Bulldog defense by a pass from teammate Brena Mitchell. Estrada beat Silber far post to put Bethany up 1-0. In the 18th minute, the Swedes would add another goal. Silber made the initial save on a shot by the Swedes' Juliana Lopez, but Lopez was able to collect the rebound and put the ball into the empty net.
Down 2-0 at halftime, the Bulldogs came out and put forth a better effort in the second half. They looked more focused and began connecting passes in the midfield. They got a couple of looks at net, in the second frame, but were unable to find pay dirt. While they played with more energy in the second half, the Bulldogs still didn't have an answer for the Swedes' offense. Bethany tacked on a pair of goals in the 72nd and 81st minutes to finish off the Bulldogs 4-0.
"It's difficult to compete with a good team when you come out of the gate as flat as we did today" lamented Bulldog head coach Mark Olson. "Last week when we beat Avila we came into the game with so much energy but today we were missing that same energy. That is an area of the game that we must be more consistent." Olson praised the play of seniors Claire Singleton (Sr. North Las Vegas, Nev.), and Peyton Morris (Sr. Burleson, Texas), saying "I thought both Claire and Peyton did well in providing quality minutes off the bench today."
After the game, the Bulldogs now 2-4 on the year, honored eight seniors, Singleton, Morris, Silber, Ashley Esquivel (Eastvale, Calif.), Bianca Bulnes (Rancho Cordova, Calif.), Pamela Rosales-Zapata (Dodge City), Makaylee Bryson (Spanish Fork, Utah), and Christina Hall (Falls Church, Va.).
 The Bulldogs are scheduled to take the field next Friday night against the Bethel College Threshers, on the road in North Newton, Kan. Kick-off is slated for 5:00 pm. Stay tuned to www.macbulldogs.com or follow us on social media @Mac_Bulldogs (Twitter), @McPhersonBulldogs (Facebook) for any changes to the schedule.
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