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amy
Matthew Brooks
1
St. Thomas (MN) UST (6-8-3, 2-6-1)
3
Winner Western Ill. WIU (4-10-3, 2-7-0)
St. Thomas (MN) UST
(6-8-3, 2-6-1)
1
Final
3
Western Ill. WIU
(4-10-3, 2-7-0)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
St. Thomas (MN) UST 0 1 1
Western Ill. WIU 1 2 3

Game Recap: Women's Soccer | | WIU Athletic Communications

Leathernecks Victorious on Senior Day

Angie Knies finished with two goals as Western Illinois defeated St. Thomas 3-1.

MACOMB, Ill. – Leatherneck women's soccer played on Sunday (Oct. 23), defeating the Tommies of St. Thomas 3-1 at John MacKenzie Alumni Field. Angie Knies scored twice and Sarah De Gannes got her first as a Leatherneck as WIU ended its 2022 fall season with a victory.
 
"This was not an easy game by any means. I think St.Thomas were in it from the start and we knew we would have a big challenge because they also have had a good season," head coach Josee Primeau said. "We just had to make sure that we followed our objectives from this week in training, play simple, try to stick to our defensive philosophy… we did make some mistakes but the girls battled physically and that's really what kept us in the game."
 
Sunday's contest was a highly competitive matchup, and it was Angie Knies who broke things open early in the game thanks to a 14th minute goal. Olivia Heinert took possession of the ball in the final third and, after some creative dribbling, played a cut-back pass to Knies, who fired a rocket to the goalkeeper's left to give WIU an early lead. St. Thomas appeared to have responded quickly in the 36th minute, but the goal was called off due to a hand ball and the game remained level. Neither team would score in the final nine minutes of the half and Western held a 1-0 advantage at the break.
 
The wind was a prominent factor on Sunday, and St. Thomas used that to their advantage in the 61st minute. After earning a corner kick, the Tommy in-swinger floated to the far post and in, leveling the game with 30 minutes remaining.
 
"The wind plays a factor in all games… it's just such a big factor that we try to capitalize on when we have it. I think we had a lot of momentum going in the first half," Primeau said. "Both teams changed their tactics with the wind and being able to do that just really that corner gave them a lot of life, even the goal that was called back gave St. Thomas a lot of life."
 
Despite the setback, Western's offense continued to push and was rewarded with another Knies goal to regain the lead in the 82nd minute. After Emmy Ellington played a ball over the Tommy defense, Knies controlled and fired from inside the 18; St. Thomas' goalkeeper was able to get a touch but it wasn't enough as Knies netted her third of the season and first game-winner.
 
Western iced the game in the 87th minute with Sarah De Gannes scoring her first in a Leatherneck uniform. Amy Andrews drew a penalty and put her shot just off the woodwork, but De Gannes came rushing in and finished with the outside of her right foot to seal the 3-1 victory.
 
Andrews led the team in shots with five as the Leathernecks made 14 attempts to score in this one, eight of which were on target. The Leathernecks drew 11 Tommy fouls as Isabel Navas Rodriguez made eight saves. Andrews and Navas Rodriguez, Emily Martins and seniors Alex Bassen and Malerie Rohwder all played the full 90 minutes.
 
Sunday's matchup was the final game in the Western Illinois careers of Amy Andrews, Alex Bassen and Malerie Rohweder, all of whom made a tremendous impact on this program.
 
"I'm happy that they all had a strong senior season. They all played a lot of minutes and were all big impact players in very different ways," Coach Primeau said. "For all three of them to have the impact that they did this year is amazing. Off the field our team culture would not be what it is without those three; they bring such a good layer to the team in very different ways and provide a sense of unity and camaraderie.
 
"Obviously Amy does what she does up front, she provided a lot of confidence and a lot of belief to our offense. Alex is just an athlete, she works so hard and she brought a lot of stability to our midfield and even our back line later in the season. Mal just knows how to play. She's a very technical and high IQ player and she can hop into any position and know exactly what she's supposed to be doing," Primeau added.
 
Sunday's victory officially concluded Western Illinois women's soccer's 2022 fall season, with the Leathernecks finishing 4-10-3. Stay tuned for more updates on all things Leatherneck women's soccer.
 
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