Chicago, Ill. - Kayla Smith scored the lone, game-winning goal in the 82nd minute, Sarah Thomas made 3 saves, and the Illinois Tech women's soccer team only allowed 4 shots, as the Scarlet Hawks defeated the Milwaukee School of Engineering 1-0 Saturday afternoon at Stuart Field. The Scarlet Hawks improved to 3-0-0 in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play and to 6-2-0 overall. The Raiders suffered their first conference loss, falling to 2-1-0 in the NACC and to 6-4-0 overall.

In what was a rematch of last year's NACC conference championship match, won by the Raiders 1-0 in overtime in Chicago last fall, it was the Scarlet Hawks who gained a small level of revenge, albeit with the stakes not as high. Still, given the recent history of these two programs battling in close matches, both in the regular season and post-season, the late September conference match carried a playoff intensity to it.

How It Happened

• The two teams played to a scoreless first half. The Scarlet Hawks had the better of the play, logging nine shots, three on goal, while possessing the ball 66 percent of the time in the opening half. The Raiders were limited to just three shots, but Scarlet Hawks' goalkeeper Thomas was forced to make two saves to preserve the scoreless halftime tie.
• Illinois Tech continued to own possession throughout most of the second half, at one point outshooting the Raiders 10-0 late into the second stanza. Raiders' goalkeeper Page Sanchez added three more saves in the second half to keep the game scoreless late. 
• The Scarlet Hawks finally broke through on the scoresheet in the 82nd minute. Amelia Moseman possessed the ball on the right sideline deep into Raiders' territory when she cut inside towards the top of the penalty box. With her defender backing up and giving her space, Moseman found a passing lane and sent a through ball to Hannah Ramos inside the penalty box. As her defender moved to cut Ramos off from running outside, Ramos instead made a quick cut inside, losing her immediate defender and continuing inside. As two more defenders converged on Ramos, she slipped a pass to her left between the two, finding Smith in a one-on-one battle at the top of the goal box. Smith received the ball and did a quick 180 to her right and fired a left-footer past Sanchez into the left corner for the eventual game-winner. For Smith, it was her second goal of the season. 

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• Kayla Smith with the game-winning goal and only goal at 82:43. Smith had 2 shots on the day, both on frame, while playing the full 90 minutes
• Hannah Ramos with the assist on the Smith game-winner. Ramos also had 1 shot, on goal, in 20 minutes of action
• Eva Narvarte with 4 shots in 83 minutes
• Caitie Chismarich with 4 shots, 1 on goal, in 79 minutes
• Lucy Jorjorian led the team with 5 shots, 2 on frame, in 81 minutes
• Defenders Mary Frampton and Gabriella Baltes each with 90 minutes played in the shutout
• Sarah Thomas made 3 saves and finished with a clean sheet

Inside The Box Score

• The Raiders Rosario Etcheverria Abuin had 2 shots, both on go, in 42 minutes played
• Elizabeth Kuhn had the Raiders' other 2 shots, with 1 on goal
• The Scarlet Hawks outshot the Raiders 21-4 and carried a 7-3 advantage in shots on goal
• Illinois Tech was whistled for 13 fouls; MSOE had 9 fouls
• The Scarlet Hawks 3 wins in conference play have all been shutouts

Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks will head to River Forest, Illinois on Wednesday afternoon, when they face a 3-0-1 (NACC) Concordia Chicago squad that has only allowed 3 goals in conference over four matches. Game time is 2:00pm.