No. 24 Women's Soccer Earns Shutout Win at Mount Mercy

Cedar Rapids, Iowa, (Sept. 23, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's soccer teams traveled to Cedar Rapids, Iowa for a Saturday afternoon Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader against Mount Mercy (Iowa).  The No. 24 women's team built up a lead in the first half and earned a 3-0 victory.  The No. 22 men's team led early, and held on for a 3-2 win.

The women's game started with Missouri Valley creating early chances, including a shot on goal from Sophomore Midfielder Carla Carmona (Barcelona, Spain) that was saved with less than four minutes played.  The Vikings continued to hold the better of possession over the next stretch of play, and created another shot on goal near the 16-minute mark.  Freshman Forward Julia Richardson (Ashland, Mo.) put her attempt past the Mustang keeper and into goal, off an assist from Sophomore Forward Viktoria Einsbor (Havdrup, Denmark), to move MVC in front, 1-0.  Less than four minutes later, the advantage grew to 2-0 after an Einsbor goal, coming from a Freshman Defender Hana Kinami (Tokorozawa, Japan) assist.  Mount Mercy created its best chance of the half with 26 minutes played, but Freshman Goalkeeper Marina Barbara Bujalance (Cornella Llobregat, Spain) made the save.  The Vikings worked another chance late in the half, and again Kinami assisted a goal from Einsbor to give the team a 3-0 advantage at halftime.

The two teams traded possession early in the second half.  Mount Mercy put shots on goal midway through, but Barbara Bujalance made a pair of saves to keep the team scoreless.  Missouri Valley was unable to increase its lead through the rest of play, and came away with a 3-0 victory.

Einsbor was involved in all three goals, scoring two goals and adding one assist.  Richardson added her first game-winning goal of the season, and Kinami totaled two assists.  Barbara Bujalance recorded her second shutout, making three saves.  Missouri Valley held a 10-5 advantage in shots, and a 4-1 edge in corner kicks.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 4-3-2 on the season and 3-0 in the Heart.  Mount Mercy drops to 2-4-2 overall and 0-3 in the conference.

Action in the men's game started quickly after the opening whistle, with Missouri Valley creating an early opportunity on goal.  Junior Forward Sam Green (Bromley, England) put the Vikings in front with just one minute played in the contest as his shot beat the Mount Mercy keeper to make it a 1-0 score.  Missouri Valley continued to pressure the MMU defense, and created four corner kicks of the next seven minutes of play.  With 10 minutes gone in the game, Sophomore Midfielder Julius Kruger (Berlin, Germany) extended the advantage to 2-0, with a goal.  The Mustangs came close to cutting their deficit in half just over two minutes later, as a shot hit off the crossbar.  The two teams traded possession over the next stretch.  Junior Defender Daniel Fernandez (Madrid, Spain) put a shot on goal midway through the half, but his shot was saved.  The next quality chance for either team came just past the 31-minute mark, and Green recorded his second goal of the afternoon to move the lead out to 3-0.  With six minutes to play before the break, Mount Mercy was awarded a penalty kick.  The Mustangs made good on their chance, and cut the deficit down to 3-1 going into halftime.

With just over five minutes played after the restart, the first chance on goal came from Junior Midfielder Malik Hasanovikj (Skopje, North Macedonia), but his shot was saved.  Mount Mercy created its best chance of the half near the 65-minute mark.  A shot was saved by Sophomore Goalkeeper Vicente Benitez Delgado (Santa Cruz de Tenerife Spain), but a rebound attempt was put into goal, and MMU closed the gap to 3-2.  The Viking defense clamped down from there, and held the Mustangs to without a shot in the final minutes of play.  Missouri Valley eventually finished out a 3-2 victory.

Green scored twice, and now has four goals and two game-winning goals on the season.  Kruger added his team-leading fifth goal, and now has a team-high 11 points.  Benitez Delgado made one save in goal.  Missouri Valley finished with nine shots and seven corner kicks in the game.

The Vikings sit at 4-3 overall and 3-0 in the Heart.  Mount Mercy drops to 4-1-3 on the season and 1-1-1 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking soccer teams will travel to Des Moines, Iowa, for a Heart doubleheader with Grand View (Iowa).  Men's game at 4 p.m., followed by the women's game at 6:30 p.m.

Women's Box Score-Click Here

Men's 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.