The UConn women’s soccer team took a trip to Chicago, IL to take on Depaul University on Wednesday, Oct. 22. This was a Big East matchup between the Huskies and the Blue Demons.
The program is coming off a dominant performance against Villanova University that ended in a 2-0 win for the Huskies. Redshirt freshman Se-Hanna Mars dominated on offense with a pair of goals in the second half. Senior Chioma Okafor and freshman Maree-Anne Van Doesburg aided on offense with assists that allowed Mars to score. On defense, freshman goalkeeper Ava Yamas proved to be a formidable force against DePaul with multiple saves and a leaping save at the start of the second half.
In the first half of the game, the Huskies took control offensively, keeping the ball in the DePaul territory, but were unable to score against the Blue Demons’ sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Iro. Early in the fifth minute, UConn got in a rhythm earning their first corner kick. However, their rhythm was soon interrupted by fouls on both sides. Freshman defender Ines Nourani was given a foul on the Huskies side due to drawing an early whistle. Minutes later, DePaul’s sophomore Mia Veldman picked up a foul for the Blue Demons.
Senior forward Lina Dantes and sophomore Taylor Jenkins led the midfield and controlled possessions early on. Dantes made a shot on goal to the bottom right corner in the 18th minute; however, Iro cleanly stopped this attempt. Okafor and Mars then came in to aid in the Huskies’ attack, which added further aggression and forced the Blue Demons to stay on the defense. Okafor nearly broke the deadlock with a shot on goal in the 25th minute; however, DePaul stayed sharp on defense with a field player blocking the goal.
UConn continued the pressure with five corner kicks in the first half. In the 35th minute, the Huskies brough in sophomore forward Farrah Stephens-Martin, who immediately made an impact with an attempt on goal which was narrowly stopped by Iro.
DePaul had limited offensive chances in the first half but still had a few impressive shots on goal. In the 28th minute, graduate student Sienna Gonzales had an impressive shot on goal, which was stopped by Yamas.
Despite UConn’s control offensively in the first half, DePaul’s defense held up, which led to the first half ending in a deadlock (0-0).
The Huskies continued their aggression in the second half, which paid off in the 50th minute. Okafor scored with a clean shot to the top center assisted by Van Doesburg. This gave the Huskies the lead early in the second half.
The Huskies continued to control the possessions after the goal, putting pressure on the Blue Demons. Forward junior Alayna Taylor and forward sophomore Naia Ocio led the offensive pressure. Ocio attempted a goal in the 56th minute, but it was stopped by Iro.
DePaul fought to respond, led by Gonzales and graduate student Jen Devona. Both produced chances for a goal but were unable to follow through. The Blue Demons attempted to find momentum with a round of substations in the middle of the half, but fouls and offside calls blocked the momentum.
As the half continued, the Huskies continued to remain in control. On goal, Yamas remained dominant, stopping DePaul’s few shots on goal with ease.
In the closing minutes, Mars and Johnson continued to play with aggression and take chances to double the lead. The pair was stopped by DePaul’s defense, but their aggression allowed the Huskies to take the 1-0 victory.
With this third straight win, UConn looks to finish off the season strong. The Huskies will look to bring the same strength into their next matchup against in-conference opponent, Seton Hall. The team will travel to South Orange, N.J. on Saturday, Oct. 25. The game will start at 6 p.m., and Husky fans can tune into this matchup on FloSports.