SILOAM SPRINGS -- Junior Alyssa Henderson scored twice, and junior Rachael Stone added a five-point effort as the bench produced four of the Golden Eagles' five goals, propelling the No. 22 John Brown University women's soccer team to a 5-0 win over Southwestern Christian (Okla.) in the Sooner Athletic tournament quarterfinal round on Thursday afternoon (Nov. 3) at Alumni Field.
Senior Paige Martin tallied her first goal of the season, junior Lauren Walter chipped in with a goal and an assist and junior Giftee Pavatt passed out a pair of helpers as the Golden Eagles (13-4-0) advanced to the semifinal round for the third consecutive season.
Henderson's first tally – her first-career game-winner – came just before half in a defensive struggle that, despite JBU holding a 10-1 shooting advantage in the first half, the hosts had little to show for its efforts. With the ice finally broken in the 42nd minute, Henderson's deflection near the goal area to the right side of goal off a feed from Stone set up the hosts for a massive second half.
With a 1-0 lead in hand, Henderson doubled John Brown's margin by capping off a nice combination play through the offensive zone. Pavatt's cross to the right side found Walter, who then sent a lovely ball back to the far side post, where Henderson deposited her fifth of the season in the 60th minute.
Just 31 seconds later with JBU holding all the momentum, Walter ripped a 10-yard shot from Pavatt that ballooned the lead to three. The 3-0 marker was Walter's team-leading 16th strike of the year.
With time winding down, Stone buried a shot to the left side of goal after a flurry in the box in the 80th minute, and Martin chipped in her first of the season in the 84th after freshman Bethany Markovich's initial shot was cleared off the line, and Stone's rebound offering was blocked by a defender. John Brown's third attempt finally crossed the goal line, handing Martin well-earned goal.
The Golden Eagle defense held Southwestern Christian (4-8-4) without a legitimate scoring chance, and out-shot the visitors 25-2 while holding a 9-0 advantage in corner kick chances.
Senior Chloe Griffin needed a lone pedestrian save to collect her fifth individual clean sheet of the season. Celest Lucio stopped eight of John Brown's 14 shots on goal in the loss.
JBU now advances to the semifinal round, where the Golden Eagles will welcome upstart six seed Wayland Baptist (Texas) to Alumni Field on Monday night (Nov. 7). The Pioneers upset third-seeded Mid-America Christian (Okla.) by a 1-0 final in extra time. The evening kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be carried live on the SAC Sports Network.
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