THE MATCHUP

Saint Mary's vs. Bethel vs. Saturday, Oct. 9 2004 Ochrymowycz Field Noon

GAMEDAY PLAYER PROFILE

Jennifer Johnson Year Sophomore Position Goalkeeper Hometown Racine, Wis.

For the official GameDay Program for today's game pdf / click here (pdf)

WINONA, Minn. — By taking a quick glance at the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference standings, last Saturday's game should have been a mismatch.

Afterall, Concordia came to Ochrymowycz Field with an impressive 4-1-0 record — with its lone loss coming to league-leading Macalester.

Saint Mary's University, meanwhile, boasted a meager 1-2-0 MIAC mark, with their lone win coming against winless Gustavus last Wednesday.

Add to that the fact that the Cobbers boasted the league's most potent offensive weapon — Morgan Bain — and it would seem safe to assume that the Cobbers would have a field day.

Never assume.

Through the game's first 54 minutes, the Cobbers threw everything they had at SMU — and the Cardinals bent, and bent, and bent some more, but they would not break. Concordia, on its 15th shot on goal, finally got one past SMU goalkeeper Jennifer Johnson (Racine, Wis.) and then made that goal stand up as the Cobbers escaped with a 1-0 victory.

"That was a great game," said SMU coach Tony Guinn, whose team had its two-game winning streak snapped with the loss. "One of our goals coming in was to shut down No. 19 (Bain) and we did that. She came in leading the conference in scoring (7 goals, 18 points) and we held her to (three) shots.

"We knew Concordia was going to be tough — they're one of the top teams in the conference," Guinn continued. "We played them tough. We just made one mistake, and it came back to haunt us."

After a scoreless first half, the Cobbers finally found a way to solve Johnson, as Amy Ravenhorst got free in the box and beat SMU's sophomore goalkeeper for the game's only goal at the 55-minute mark.

"Jen played awesome — I haven't seen a keeper in the conference that's any better than she is," said Guinn of his goalkeeper, who finished with 19 saves. "She kept us in the game. It would have been nice if we could have given her some (offensive) support, we just didn't take advantage of the few opportunities we had.

“It’s always tough to lose, but when you played the way we did — you can’t be too disappointed,” added Guinn, whose team is looking for MIAC win No. 2 this afternoon, when the Cardinals play host to Bethel. “We’re making great strides every time we step on the field. I think if we play the way we did (against Concordia), we have a good chance of coming away with a win (vs. the Royals).”