Marquette women’s soccer needed three points to keep its postseason hopes alive, searching for its first appearance in the Big East Tournament since 2017.
But the Golden Eagles (5-11-3, 2-6-1 Big East) will have to try again next year as they fell to the No. 25 Xavier Musketeers (14-2-2, 7-1-1 Big East) 2-1 and were eliminated from contention for the seventh-straight season Sunday afternoon at Valley Fields.
“Overall, whenever you’re playing against a team recognized in the top 25 and you have them on the ropes a little bit, I felt like there were a few moments where we could have delivered a knockout blow and we didn’t,” Marquette head coach Chris Allen said.
“We let them stay in the game and good teams find ways to win. They are a good team with some multi-talented players and they found a way to win a big game on the road for them and secure three points.”
Dancer nets game-winner for Musketeers
Heading out of the locker room, the game was tied. But it was only matter of time before No. 25 Xavier showed Marquette why it was a nationally ranked team.
Just 11 minutes into the second half, junior forward Regan Dancer received the ball on the left side of the box, took a touch and fired it into the top right corner to give her team a 2-1 lead.
Regan Dancer’s sixth goal of the season puts the Musketeers in front! pic.twitter.com/YpLKazfHrh
— Xavier Women’s Soccer (@XavierWSOC) October 27, 2024
The goal would serve as the game-winner as Marquette was unable to find the back of the net in the remaining 34 minutes of the match, marking its eleventh loss of the season.
“Their forwards were better than our backline today,” Allen said. “They were able to get the ball in some dangerous spaces. Ideally, we tried to take that away a little bit more in the second half, which we did, but then we allowed them to have a greater possession on the ball. We had to take away something and we gave them some shots from distance.”
In the final home game of the year, Allen reflected on his first season at the helm of a Division I program.
“The biggest thing is how proud I am to be here,” Allen said. “Those that really are watching and really know, they are able to see the progress we are making on the field, off the field, culturally, competitiveness, combativeness, all those different types of things.
“We’re going to leave this season knowing there’s a lot of work that needs to be done, but proud in what we’ve established and excited to attack the challenges ahead.”
Action-packed first half
Each team’s offense made their presence known early.
In the 10th minute, Xavier got on the board first when graduate student defender Maddie Reed booted the ball up the field, finding first-year forward Samantha Erbach as she turned and fired the ball into the bottom right corner.
Erbach’s goal marked the fifth time she had scored in her last five matches, as she now leads her team and ranks second in the Big East with 10 goals.
Marquette didn’t wait long to respond.
Two minutes later, senior forward Kate Gibson received the ball in the box and took advantage of Xavier junior goalkeeper Maria Galley’s error, slotting the ball into the open net to tie up the game and earn her second goal of the year.
15′ | MU – 1 | XAVIER – 1
Gibson ties it up in the 12th minute
pic.twitter.com/Gr1nTrYIg4
— MARQUETTE Soccer (@MarquetteWSOC) October 27, 2024
“It’s Senior Day,” Allen said. “They (the seniors) were all in on the performance and she led the way. When she gets going in open field, there’s nothing more fun to watch.”
Despite multiple opportunities from both sides, neither team was able to net a go-ahead goal for the remainder of the first half. The Musketeers outshot the Golden Eagles 9-4 in the frame.
Up next
Marquette will close out the 2024 campaign in South Orange, New Jersey, facing Seton Hall (4-11-3, 1-6-2 Big East) Thursday at 5 p.m. CST.
This article was written by Kaylynn Wright. She can be reached at kaylynn.wright@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @KaylynnWrightMU.