Bison Women’s Soccer Rolls to Victory Against Thiel

Oct. 31 – BETHANY, W. Va. – The Bethany College women's soccer team ended the 2015 campaign with a 6-0 win over Thiel College on Saturday afternoon. The Bison offense exploded for their highest goal total of the season.

The Green & White jumped out to an early lead as junior Julie Slezak (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) found the back of the net in the 8^th minute. Senior Bri Steich (Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown) earned the assist on the play. Steich recorded a career-high two assists in her final game as a Bison.

Junior Brittany Fullbright (Wadsworth, Ohio/Wadsworth) scored the first of her three goals in the 20^th minute as she fired a laser from outside the box that beat the Tomcats goalkeeper. Fullbright netted another goal in the 24^th minute on a free kick.

The Bison offense couldn't be stopped as they added another goal before halftime. Steich found her teammate Marena Cline (Follansbee, W. Va./Brooke) in the box to take a four-goal advantage in the 45^th minute. Bethany recorded 13 shots in the opening period.

The second half saw the two teams from the Presidents' Athletic Conference engage in a defensive battle early. Bethany, however, couldn't be stopped for long as Halee Fedrick (Charleroi, Pa./Charleroi Area) made it a 5-0 contest in the 76th minute. Junior Madison Cochran (Grafton, W. Va./Grafton) collected an assist on the play.

Bethany received another goal from Fullbright in the 83^rd minute on a pass from Slezak. The score gave Fulbright a team-high nine goals as she earned her second hat trick of the season.

The Bison defense held the Tomcat offense at bay the entire game en route to their first shutout on the year. Andrea Precurato (Austintown, Ohio/Austintown Fitch) and Kayla Schultz (Moon Township, Pa./Moon Area) solidified the backline and kept Thiel out of the offensive zone.

Sophomore goaltender Taylor Sasak (Berea, Ohio/Berea) totaled six saves in 73 minutes of play. The PAC leader in saves was replaced by Anna Riddle (Mt. Pleasant, Pa./Mt. Pleasant), who tallied four saves in 17 minutes of work. 

Offensively, the Bison finished the game with 22 shots. Fullbright led the way with five shots, while Cline and Cochran added four.

Bethany College overcame adversities throughout the year and ended the season on a high note. The Bison will return everyone, with the exception of Steich, as they look to build on this performance for the 2016 campaign.