No. 20 Women's Soccer Pulls Away from William Penn in Homecoming Win

Marshall, Mo., (Oct. 14, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's soccer teams hosted William Penn (Iowa) in a Homecoming doubleheader Saturday evening inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  The No. 20 women's team pulled away late for a 4-0 win.

The women's game opened with a pair of early chances for Missouri Valley, as both Sophomore Forward Viktoria Einsbor (Havdrup, Denmark) and Sophomore Forward Ashley Arribas (Lake Forest, Calif.) each had attempts on goal in the first four minutes of play, but both attempts were saved.  Freshman Goalkeeper Lola Benitez (Madrid, Spain) was called on for her first save of the game near the 15-minute mark.  Just over six minutes later, Junior Forward Miriam Aldabo Alguero (Mequinenza, Spain) tested the WPU keeper, with a save made on the shot.  Benitez made her second save of the half with less than 14 minutes remaining before the break.  Missouri Valley countered moments later, and a cross was sent to the top of the William Penn box.  A deflection off a clearance attempt went off Arribas, and over the keeper into goal to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead.  Missouri Valley tried to increase its advantage in the final minutes of the half, as Sophomore Forward Siliva Maldonado (Madrid, Spain) and Arribas both had shots saved, and MVC went into halftime on top, 1-0.

Action in the second half started a shot on goal from Sophomore Forward Judit Ferre (Barcelona, Spain) with less than five minutes played after the restart, with her chance saved.  The two teams traded possession over the next stretch, until near the 58-minute mark.  Freshman Defender Miranda Wilson (Twin Falls, Idaho) connected with Arribas, who scored her second of the game, and moved the advantage out to 2-0.  Arribas came close to another goal just over one minute later, as the William Penn keeper made a save.  The Vikings continued to build up possession and pressure, which eventually led to an own-goal from WPU, making it a 3-0 score with 17 minutes remaining in the contest.  The Vikings found one more goal five minutes later, as Sophomore Defender Marta Carrasco Mesa (Sevilla, Spain) sent a cross into the box, which was headed past the WPU keeper from six-yards out by Einsbor to finish scoring in the contest.  Sophomore Defender Zoe Christofaro (Tucson, Ariz.) had a late shot saved, and Missouri Valley finishing out a 4-0 victory.

Arribas registered her first multi-goal game of the season, and now has a team-high 10 goals, 22 points and five game-winning goals.  Einsbor added her fifth goal, and now has 11 points.  Carrasco Mesa recorded her second assist, and Wilson now has one assist this season. Benitez made two saves and now has three shutouts on the season.  Missouri Valley held a 16-4 advantage in shots and a 3-1 edge in corner kicks.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 8-4-2 on the season and 7-1 in the Heart.  William Penn drops to 4-8-1 overall and 1-6-1 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking soccer teams will host Clarke (Iowa) in a Heart doubleheader, Oct. 21, inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  Women's game starts at 1 p.m., followed by the men's game at 3:30 p.m.

Box Score-Click Here

About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.