BABSON PARK, Fla.- The Ave Maria University women's soccer team secured their first winning season since 2021 on Saturday, finishing the regular season with a 2-0 victory over the Webber International Warriors in Babson Park. The win moved the Gyrenes to 6-4-4 on the season, ensuring AMU's record will finish above .500 regardless of the result of The Sun Conference Tournament.
The Gyrenes got on the board in bizarre circumstances in the 21st minute of Saturday's match. The Gyrenes put pressure on the Webber goalie, and fifth year senior Kana Mateaki sent a shot near the far post that was then placed into the back of the net by a Warrior defender. The own goal gave Ave Maria a 1-0 lead, and served as the game-winner, although Ave Maria did have one more goal to come.
That goal came after the halftime whistle, with AMU still holding a 1-0 lead. In the 53rd minute, Catherine Dalton fired a corner kick that bounced through to the foot of her sister, Rachel Dalton. In her final regular season game as a Gyrene, one of the most decorated scorers in program history struck again, scoring the final goal of the regular season to provide the Gyrenes with the final margin of 2-0.
Despite just two goals entering the net, it was an active offensive game for both the Gyrenes and the Warriors. The teams combined for 28 shots - 15 for Ave Maria and 13 for Webber - with 18 of those shots going on goal. 11 of the 15 shots and eight of the ten shots on goal for AMU were provided by three players - Rachel Dalton, Catherine Dalton, and Elizabeth Nowak.
Emma Schweitzer was outstanding in goal for the Gyrenes, making eight saves to secure her fifth shutout of the season, tying the school record set by Maddie Samuelson in 2021. The shutout was Schweitzer's ninth in two years at Ave, just two shy of Samuelson's career record. Entering the conference tournament, Schweitzer has made 58 saves with an 1.08 goals against average. The goals against average currently ranks third in school history for a single season.
With the other results around The Sun Conference, the Gyrenes enter the 2024 Sun Conference Women's Soccer Tournament as the fifth seed, sending AMU on the road in the first round. The opponent will be a familiar one in the fourth seeded St. Thomas University Bobcats. The conference meeting between the two schools was a 1-1 tie in Miami Gardens on September 25, while the Bobcats won a non-conference game, 2-0, earlier this week. Kickoff of the conference tournament game is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. in Dade County.
