Miami Dominate in 3-0 Win at Arkansas-Little Rock Defense Holds Opponent to Zero Shots on Goal

NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The University of Miami women’s soccer team (4-0-0) cruised to a 3-0 victory over Arkansas-Little Rock (1-4-0), Friday evening in the Hurricanes first road contest of the year.

Two juniors for Miami scored their first goals of the season in the opening half to give the Hurricanes a 2-0 halftime lead.

Jessica Wyble scored the first goal (unassisted) of the match in the 29th minute with a shot from 35 yards out. Paulelette Ricks-Chambers scored her goal just four minutes later, with a shot that hit the right center of the net, also unassisted.

The third and final goal came off the foot of Brittney Steinbruch, on a pass from Beverly Goebel. Steinbruch’s shot beat the keeper on its way to the top right corner of the net from fifteen yards out. The goal was Steinbruch’s team-leading fifth of the season. The Wyckoff, N.J. native now has 21 career goals, tying her with Allison McWhinney for third in program history.

“It was a fantastic performance by the team. The way we came out for our first road trip and the discipline of the team to prepare for this match was outstanding,” said head coach Tricia Taliaferro. “We built off of Sunday’s win (2-0 vs. FAU) and became better as a team.”

Even though the offense tied a season-high with three goals, the defense was the story of the game. Freshman Vikki Alonzo picked up her third shutout in four matches and she didn’t even need to make a save in the victory. Miami outshot their opponent 25-1.

The defense didn’t allow a shot of any kind in the first half and only allowed one in the second, with none on goal for the entire match.

“Our defense has been indicative of our first four games,” said Taliaferro. “The defense is driving our team.”

She may be a freshman, but defender Danielle Bidegain has started all four matches for the Hurricanes this season and is part of the reason why Miami has only allowed 12 shots on goal this season.

Bidegain said, “We knew they would come out hard, but we were prepared. Their sideline was rowdy, trying to get into our heads, but when they pushed us, we pushed back harder.

Miami will arguably face their toughest opponent to date, as they conclude the two game road trip at Memphis. The Tigers are the defending Conference USA Champions and are the first UM opponent that reached the NCAA Tournament in 2007. Game time is set for Sunday at 2 p.m. EST.

The Hurricanes are scheduled to return to Cobb Stadium Wednesday, Sept. 10th when the host Purdue at 7 p.m. Tickets are on sale at $3 for children and $5 for adults.