WASHINGTON, Pa. (Oct. 9) -- The Thiel College Women's Soccer team knocked off Washington and Jefferson College 1-0 Friday evening in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) clash from Alexandre Stadium.
The victory marks the Tomcats' (6-5-1, 2-4-1) first triumph over the Presidents (5-7-0, 3-4-0) since 2002 and is Thiel's first ever road win against W&J.
Liz Scheeff (Olmsted Falls, Ohio/Olmsted Falls) delivered the game-winner for Thiel with a right-footed 25-yard strike that clipped the underside of the cross bar on a free kick in the 39th minute.
The goal was Scheef's third on the year and first since Thiel's 12-0 route of Penn State Beaver on Sept. 6. Scheeff recorded both Tomcat shots on goal in the victory.
Brynn Houser (Harmony, Pa./Seneca Valley) stopped a career-most 14 shots in the victory for her fifth shutout of the season. Houser is one shutout shy of tying the Thiel single-season record of 6 held by Ashleigh Dunsmore (2004) and Kristen Benjamin (2001). Houser is the first Tomcat keeper since Angela Balint in 2011 with consecutive clean sheets.
Despite facing 31 shots, Houser and the Thiel defense kept the Presidents off the scoreboard to secure the Tomcats' sixth shutout of the season. The six shutouts tie the 2002, 2003 and 2004 squads for the second-most in program history, just one shy of the single-season record of seven set by the 2001 Cats.
The home side had a late chance in the final 10 seconds of play, but
Leia Boudreaux (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) provided a timely clear from 8 yards out just as Alexa Taylor was about to fire on goal to seal the Tomcat victory.
Thiel is back in action Wednesday for a home tilt with Geneva at 5 p.m. from Alumni Stadium.
