ROCKLIN, Calif. –With a slew of both new and returning players packing the roster, and a new head coach at the helm, 2016 looks to be the year the William Jessup Leady Warriors can do something big. Their first test came on Monday with the College of Idaho 'Yotes in town, and Jessup had to face early adversity on Opening Day that set the stage for a 3-1 defeat.
Jessup got off to a pretty hot start Monday and seemingly looked to have all the momentum in the match. Continuing pressure on their opponents, the Warriors were awarded a penalty kick in the 33rd minute. Jessup's leading goal scorer from 2015, sophomore Yvette Perez (Santa Rosa, CA), stepped up the dot and drove it home to put the Warriors up 1-0.
A key reason for that continued pressure early on was senior Michelle Sandage (Carson City, NV). Starting up top at forward, the senior captain Sandage used her tenacity to pressure the Yotes' backline and keep the ball in Jessup's attacking third. However, the Warriors' chemistry on the field took a big hit when an injury forced Sandage to move into the backline for the final 55-minutes.
"We have a lot more attacking players than we have defending players," said head coach Rachel Constantini "We have to adjust accordingly to injury, and going forward we're going to look to generate more of an attack in the finishing third (of the match)."
College of Idaho finally got their offense moving early in the second half, when they scored back to back goals in the span of five-minutes to take a 2-1 lead. With Jessup looking to be fatigued, the 'Yotes were able to add another goal with just over 20-minutes remaining, pushing their lead to two.
"We're just young. We need a lot of coaching; we need a lot of direction. We have a lot of talent and we're going to do a lot this season, we just need to continue to work on the base that we have," said Constantini.
"We're going to work on our communication, our formation, and definitely our fitness," added Constantini on what will be on the docket for her team's practices this week.
The Warriors will now have a few days this week to practice before they next take the field on Friday. Jessup will travel up to Redding to face Northwest Christian University on a neutral field at Simpson University. This is the first of a three-match road trip for the Warriors, with their next home match coming on September 10 against Marymount College.
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William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook), @WJUSports (Twitter), and @JessupAthletics (Instagram, and Snapchat).
