The Monmouth women=s soccer team, in the midst of its most successful season ever, took a break from Midwest Conference competition this past weekend, splitting a pair of non-conference matches on its home turf at Bobby Woll Field. Meanwhile, the men=s soccer team suffered another disappointing MWC setback, dropping a 3-2 decision to arch-rival Knox in Galesburg.

Monmouth (6-5 season record) opened the weekend with an exciting, come-from-behind 4-3 win over Blackburn College on Saturday afternoon as the Scots received two goals apiece from freshman Jessica Adams (Harvard,IL/HS) and junior Tisha Kimoto (Aurora,IL/ Waubonsie Valley). Monmouth jumped on their visitors quickly, pressing the action on the offensive side of the field and firing off 16 shots on goal. The pressure paid off in the form of two goals on set plays from corner kicks as Adams scored her 7th goal of the season at the 12:35 mark and Kimoto connected in the 21st minute. Both goals were assisted by sophomore Jill Heneghan (Godfrey,IL/Alton) and gave MC a 2-0 halftime advantage.

Blackburn tied the match with two goals in the first 10 minutes of the second period but Monmouth regained the lead when Adams scored again in the 60th minute off an assist from freshman Keri Kling (Harvard,IL/HS). After Blackburn drew even three minutes later, Kimoto tallied the game-winning goal with 21:52 left on the clock as she converted a Heneghan corner kick into a beautiful header which beat the Blackburn goalie and gave the Scots the victory.

Harsh weather conditions and a talented, experienced Maryville College team combined to spell a 7-2 defeat on Sunday. Playing the first half into the teeth of a fierce wind, Monmouth was unable to clear the ball effectively and gave the Saints several goal opportunities. Maryville ran up a 5-0 lead before halftime and added one more early in the second period before the Scots could dent the scoreboard. Kimoto scored on two penalty kicks within five minutes and took over the team scoring lead with her 8th and 9th goals of the season but it was too late to prevent the loss.

AWe relaxed too much in the second half and let a big, physical team dominate the midfield by pushing us off the ball,@ commented Monmouth coach Simon Cordery on the Blackburn match. ADespite letting them equalize we retained our composure and allowed our abilities to show in retaking the lead.@ On the Maryville defeat, Cordery said AWe lost the match with the toss of the coin before the kickoff by having to play against the wind in the first half. Maryville played a smart game, passing into open space and giving us all sorts of problems. That we did manage to play even with them in the second half is a tribute to our players= determination.@

Four matches remain on the women=s fall schedule, including the team=s final two MWC matches. This weekend Monmouth (4-3, 5th place MWC) hosts St. Norbert on Saturday and Lawrence on Sunday in critical Midwest Conference competition with both matches scheduled to start at 1:00 PM.

The Monmouth men=s team (3-7, 1-5 MWC) suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 loss at Knox on Saturday as the Prairie Fire won their first conference match in six tries. Senior striker Josh Oakley (Mattoon,IL/HS) again carried the Scots offense, scoring both goals. His first came on a penalty kick five minutes into the first half and the second on a head shot following an assist pass from Sean Lowery (St. Charles,MO/Francis Howell North) in the 67th minute to tie the match at 2-2. A Knox goal at the 72:00 mark stood as the eventual winner for the Fire.

With the two goals, Oakley matched his season total from last year and has scored 11 of the team=s 15 goals this fall. Monmouth has six matches left this season, including an MWC doubleheader at home this weekend as North Division opponents St. Norbert (Saturday) and Lawrence (Sunday) visit Bobby Woll Field. Both contests will follow the women=s matches and are tentatively scheduled to start at 3:00 PM.