NORTHFIELD, Minn. – For the second time in as many years, the Carleton College women's soccer team lost the MIAC Playoffs championship game by a score of 1-0 to St. Catherine University.
"I am so proud of the group and our coaches," said Carleton head coach
Jessica Mueller. "We knew it was going to be a really close game, but this game does not define our season. The effort level was high. We had some really good chances.
"It was a really competitive game, and we happened to be on the losing end of it."
No. 2 seeded St. Catherine (16-3-1, 9-1-0 MIAC) nearly scored in the opening 90 seconds, as forward Briana Henaman intercepted a wayward Carleton pass and squared for Kallie Tuominen, who scooped her first-touch half-volley over the waiting empty goal.
First-year forward
Lauren Caldwell nearly created a goal out of nothing for the No. 1 seeded Knights (16-2-2, 8-0-2 MIAC) in the 22nd minute, picking up possession at the top of the box and swinging a shot toward the upper corner. The right-footed try rang the crossbar and spun out of bounds, keeping the game scoreless.
In the 27th minute, Haley Glass took a St. Catherine free kick low and hard towards the bottom corner, drawing a strong diving save from
Avery Trapp, resulting in a corner kick. The Knights cleared the initial service, but the Wildcats rallied, swinging in the recovered ball. Glass ran onto the ball behind Carleton's line and touched it back for MIAC leading scorer Ari Green, who finished the short-range attempt to give the visitors the lead. Green was also the lone goal scorer in the Wildcats' 2022 championship triumph.
St. Catherine, who came into the contest with the second-stingiest defense in the MIAC, would prove tough to break down for Carleton. The Wildcats held the Knights without any dangerous chances for the remainder of the first half, heading into the break with the lead despite being outshot 8-3.
Carleton came within inches of a 65th-minute equalizer as
Cate Patterson lofted a perfect ball over the defense for
Kathryn Kresse, who sprinted into the box, challenged by goalkeeper Kate Praetz. Kresse slowed and touched wide, trying to slide her shot under a diving Praetz. The goaltender got a forearm to the attempt, but it squirmed through and rolled towards the goal-line. A pair of Wildcat defenders recovered at the last possible second, sweeping the ball away from the line for a crucial team save to maintain their advantage.
After the Wildcats committed a foul just in front of the Carleton bench in the 87th minute,
Piper Dean curled her set-piece into the 18, where
Ashlyn Haigh met it with a header, but the well-struck aerial effort was stopped by Praetz on the short hop.
St. Catherine was able to command possession in the final few minutes, keeping Carleton from any dangerous areas. The final whistle blew, and the Wildcats sewed up their third consecutive MIAC Playoffs title, earning a trip to the NCAA tournament. Praetz notched a D-III-leading 14th shutout, making three saves. Carleton's Trapp made two stops of her own. Carleton outshot St. Catherine overall by a 14-7 tally, with a 4-3 shots on goal advantage.
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton will await the decision of the NCAA selection committee to see if the Knights receive 1 of 21 at-large bids to the national tournament. The NCAA Selection Show will take place Monday, with the show airing on NCAA.com at 12:30 p.m. CT.
Carleton still holds a chance at an at-large bid to the national tournament, having an excellent resume with multiple wins over regionally-ranked schools. Whether or not they advance, though, the Knights have still posted the second-highest win total in program history (see chart below).
Most Wins in Program History
18-6-0 (.750) — in 2008
16-2-2 (.850) — in 2023
15-3-2 (.800) — in 2010
14-3-0 (.824) — in 1982
13-5-0 (.722) — in 2007
13-2-3 (.806) — in 2022
