STORRS, Conn. – The University of Connecticut women’s soccer team peppered Temple University with 33 shots to take a 3-1 win on Friday evening at Morrone Stadium. UConn (9-6-0) returns to the win column after dropping two conference games in Florida. The Huskies improve to 3-2 in the American with the turnaround. The Owls drop to 6-7-1 with the loss and fall to 1-4 in AAC games.

UConn possessed a noticeable jump in this evening’s game, maintaining possession of the ball for the majority of the first half. The Huskies peppered Temple goaltender Shauni Kerkhoff with a number of shots in the early going. Julie Hubbard (Waverly, Pa.) led all shooters with 10 shots, nearly tallying a few solid opportunities in the opening minutes of play. Hubbard let loose several long shots from 28 yards out with serious velocity that nearly connected. Her first attempt sailed just right of the cage while her second bounced off the crossbar. Hubbard had yet another chance in the 36^th minute, when she one-touched a Liana Hinds (Hartford, Conn.) free kick but Kerkhoff made the diving save.

The Huskies nearly scored again on a series of chances in tight to the goal. Stephanie Ribeiro (Pawtucket, R.I.) played a perfect corner kick into the box to the waiting head of teammate Samantha McGuire (Fishkill, N.Y.). McGuire’s header hit the crossbar and landed just in front of the goal line. A mad scramble ensued, with Rachel Hill (Somersworth, N.H.) fighting hard to get the ball over the line, but Kerkhoff and the Temple defense stood tall and again foiled the UConn offense.

The Huskies took over half of their final shot total before finally breaking through on the scoreboard in the 39^th minute. Ribeiro played a corner directly to Julie Hubbard, who headed home her fourth goal of the season. Ribeiro struck again 29 seconds later with a goal of her own to give Connecticut a 2-0 lead. Rachel Hill carried the ball down the right side of the field and into the top of the box before playing a pass to Riley Houle (Columbia, Conn.) in the center of the box. With a defender on her back and no ability to turn, Houle spotted Ribeiro racing down the center of the field and placed a soft touch back up to the top of the box. Ribeiro charged onto the slowing ball and fired a blistering shot from the top of the box that beat Kerkhoff on the upper left side of the net. The Huskies did not let off the pressure but could not capitalize on any more chances in the closing minutes of the first half.

Continuing the momentum from the first half, senior captain Jennifer Skogerboe (Leesburg, Va.) converted for the Huskies to start the second half after just 32 ticks of the clock. Skogerboe’s goal came from the left side of the box on a pass from Rachel Hill. The senior’s first goal of the season put the game out of reach at 3-0.

UConn would relinquish a penalty kick midway through the second half. The referee made the call for the PK after a Liana Hinds foul in the box. Erin Lafferty capitalized on one of the Owls few ventures into the box this evening, tricking Emily Armstrong (Collegeville, Pa.) with a low shot to the right portion of the cage. Despite narrowing the gap, the deficit proved insurmountable for Temple as time wound down in the second .

The Huskies finished with a dominant advantage in shots, out mustering Temple 33-4. Emily Armstrong backstopped the UConn win with two saves to pick up her ninth victory of the season. Shauni Kerkhoff played an impressive game between the pipes for Temple, racking up 14 saves on a number of quality scoring chances that included multiple rebound opportunities.

UConn delves deeper into its conference schedule on Thursday, October 7^th. The Huskies will take on American Athletic Conference foe Cincinnati in a 7pm contest at Morrone Stadium. Thursday’s game will be Connecticut’s penultimate showing on its home pitch before closing out the regular season in conference action on the road.

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