The UW-Whitewater women’s soccer team celebrated senior day on Saturday, Sept. 20, and showed their appreciation for those seniors with an emphatic 5-1 victory over Cornell. The Warhawks didn’t allow an hour-long rain delay to deter them. The Warhawks came on to the field energetic and took an early 1-0 lead on a header from a corner kick by senior midfielder Avery Haisman.
It didn’t take long for the Warhawks to add two more goals, from freshman forward Lilli Rick and sophomore forward Jenna Laidlaw, respectively. It took the team just 35 minutes to put up their second-most goals in a game this season, with three goals scored in the first half.
“The biggest thing was knowing we had a 3-0 lead on the other team, but not to let up,” head coach Dan Montanye said.
Cornell scored their only goal of the game right out of halftime, but the Warhawks responded almost immediately with a goal from freshman forward Amelia Burns. The onslaught of scoring would slow down, with the last goal of the game being scored by sophomore forward Brooklyn Carlson at the 72-minute mark, over 20 minutes since the previous goal.
(Chase Keller)
This was an emotional game, as senior days usually are. The Warhawks have a smaller senior class this season, with just four seniors. However, that didn’t do anything to diminish the impact that these seniors have had.
“With there being a smaller number of seniors, each of them have played such a key role because the underclassmen really look up to them.” Montanye said. “Thank you to our seniors for everything you’ve done for the program.”
The seniors on this team have taken inspiration from the senior classes of years past, and hope to have the same impact on the underclassman.
“When we were freshman, our seniors were huge building blocks for us and I really looked up to them.” Haisman said.
Communication has continued to be a focal point and a huge strength for the Warhawks, and it helped lead them to a win today. Hearing them talk and communicate as a team doesn’t go unnoticed and has been extremely important as the season progresses.
The Warhawks return to action on Sept. 22 against Benedictine at Robert Fiskum Field. They look to build some momentum before WIAC play begins.
