The University of Evansville has won a record five Missouri Valley Conference tournament championships in women's soccer, but many of the current players were in junior high the last time the Aces captured a title in 2001.
Hopefully that six-year drought will end this weekend in the State Farm MVC Championship hosted by Evansville. Coach Chris Pfau's number two seeded Aces host number three Creighton at Black Beauty Field Friday at 7:30 in the semifinals, following the 5:00 match between number one Illinois State and number four Drake.
Evansville won the first tournament, in 1996, and followed with triumphs in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2001. This is the third year in which Evansville has hosted the State Farm MVC Women’s Soccer Tournament. UE hosted the first, in 1996, again in 1998, and won both. Those two events took place at the previous Black Beauty Field, located where the current baseball outfield of Braun Stadium is today. Today’s soccer stadium, Arad McCutchan Stadium, started out as a football stadium in the mid-80s before the sport was discontinued in 1998. The field was completely renovated and turned into a soccer facility in time for the 2000 season.
This is the third consecutive year in which Evansville has played Creighton in the semifinals. The Bluejays scored in the last minute on their home field to beat Evansville 3-2 in the 2005 semifinals. The Aces got revenge last season, beating Creighton 2-1 on the Bluejays’ home field to get into the championship match for the first time since 2001.
Ten is the magic number at the University of Evansville. Third year coach Chris Pfau has led the Aces to 10 victories in each of his three seasons. In the three seasons before his arrival, the Aces won 6, 3 and 3 games.
Here’s how Evansville did this season against the other three semifinal teams. The Aces lost at home to Drake 4-3 in overtime Oct. 19, tied Illinois State on the road 1-1 Oct. 21, and beat Creighton at home 1-0 on Oct. 26. Those were the final three league games of the season for Evansville. Illinois State was 2-0-1 against the other three semifinalists, beating Creighton 2-1 and Drake 2-1, and tying Evansville 1-1. The Redbirds played all three semifinalists on their home field. Creighton was 1-2-0, losing at Illinois State 2-1, winning at Drake 2-1 and losing at Evansville 1-0. Drake was also 1-2-0, with a 2-1 loss at home to Creighton, a 2-1 loss at Illinois State and a 4-3 overtime victory against Evansville.
A key to Evansville’s success is the play of Kayla Lambert and Mia Tofano, a pair of junior forwards from Las Vegas, Nevada, where they were club team teammates. Lambert is one of the top four scorers in MVC history with 36 goals and 22 assists for 94 points in her three seasons at Evansville. Tofano has been here two years, totaling 20 goals and 10 assists for 50 points. This season, Lambert leads the league in scoring at 9-4-22 and Tofano is close behind at 6-3-15. Tofano scored the lone goal in UE’s 1-0 win over Creighton Oct. 26.
Directing the middle is senior Heidi Grey (4-4-12), a three-time all-MVC player. If she makes the all-conference team again, she will join former MVC Players of the Year Krissy Meek and Krista McKendree as the only Evansville players to earn all-conference honors four years in a row. Juniors Nicole Moyen (1-2-4), Julie Winkler (1-3-5) and Danielle Brand (1-0-2) are the other three starters in the midfield.
The back four are outside backs Kasey Kutzler and Katelyn Smith, a pair of sophomores, and central defenders Nicole ‘Ziggy’ Zygmontowicz, a senior, and Kara Murphy, a junior. The Aces have allowed 21 goals so far, their best defensive number since the 2000 team allowed only 16 goals in 22 matches. The goalkeeper position belongs to the only starting freshman, Theresa Bagby. The native of Colorado came back from a serious back injury as a result of competitive snow skiing in high school to earn a scholarship. She has started in 14 of the team’s 17 matches, and has a 1.24 goals allowed average and six solo shutouts.
In his third year, head coach Chris Pfau has quickly turned around the Aces’ program that dropped quickly following the departure of coach Mick Lyon to Indiana University following the 2001 season. Pfau was an assistant coach on Princeton University’s 2004 NCAA Final Four team before coming to Evansville in 2005. His assistant coach is Krista McKendree, the first and only All-American in school history. The outstanding defender was the 2000 MVC Player of the Year and was also first team in 1998, 1999 and 2001. Pfau, McKendree and goalkeepers coach Alison Weimer earned the 2006 MVC Women’s Soccer Coaching Staff of the Year award.
