The ninth-ranked UMSL women’s soccer team celebrated winning the Great Lakes Valley Conference regular-season title after a 5-0 victory over Maryville last Wednesday at the Don Dallas Soccer Field. (Photo courtesy of Micah H. Manuel/UMSL Athletics)
Women’s Soccer
The University of Missouri–St. Louis women’s soccer team clinched its second straight Great Lakes Valley Conference regular-season championship last Wednesday with a 5-0 victory over Maryville at the Don Dallas Soccer Field. Madi Riege started and capped the scoring for the Tritons with goals in the 16th and 82nd minute. In between, UMSL got goals from Josie Maddox, Ella Hickam and Ella Anselm while outshooting Maryville 14-9. Goalkeeper Allysa Wolf made four saves in her sixth clean sheet of the season. The Tritons, who moved up to No. 9 in the latest national poll, didn’t let up with the league title secure. They topped Missouri S&T 2-1 on Sunday in Rolla, Missouri, to run their unbeaten streak to 16 matches, dating to Aug. 29. Anselm snapped a 1-1 tie with her ninth goal of the season off a feed from Maddox in the 88th minute as the Tritons ended the Miners’ seven-match unbeaten and six-match winning streaks. Aubrey Rego also scored for UMSL, and Wolf made three saves to earn the victory. The Tritons (13-1-3, 12-0-2 GLVC) will play host to No. 8 seed Lewis in the quarterfinals of the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Don Dallas Soccer Field.
Men’s Soccer
The Tritons locked up a bid to the GLVC Tournament after rallying for a 2-1 victory at Missouri S&T on Sunday at Allgood-Bailey Stadium in Rolla, Misosuri. It was UMSL’s first victory over the Miners since Oct. 17, 2021. Mike Banasik scored first for S&T in the 19th minute, but Brady Freeman answered in the 43rd minute to pull the Tritons even heading into intermission. Gunther Jean-Louis scored the only goal of the second half and his first goal of the season in the 73rd minute to give UMSL the upper hand. Will Winkler made five saves for the Tritons to preserve the victory. The win came on the heels of a 2-0 loss to Maryville Wednesday at the Don Dallas Soccer Field in UMSL’s final home match of the season. Yayo Mutombo and Jose Vilela scored in the 13th and 81st minute, respectively, and the Tritons couldn’t get the ball past goalkeeper Asgrimur Vidisson despite 10 shots on goal. The win against S&T was still enough to move UMSL into a tie for fifth place with Quincy with 21 points in the GLVC standings. The Tritons (7-6-3, 6-5-3 GLVC) will be seeded sixth in the GLVC Tournament and will face No. 3 seed Maryville on either Saturday or Sunday.
Volleyball
UMSL went 1-1 last week, rallying for a 25-11, 21-25, 26-28, 25-17, 15-9 victory against visiting Lewis on Friday evening before falling to No. 23 Indianapolis 25-22, 25-21, 15-25, 25-21 on Saturday. The Tritons dropped two of the first three sets against the Flyers but regained control in the fourth. Mady Gant had three blocks during a 7-0 UMSL run that helped level the match, and the Tritons gained control in the final set with four straight points to take a 7-4 lead they wouldn’t relinquish. Addison Voorhees and Alayna Santel each had 17 kills in Friday’s victory to lead an attack that outhit the Flyers .300-.176. Gant finished with six blocks, and Skylar Weaver had 23 digs. UIndy presented a bigger challenge as it took the first two sets on Saturday, overcoming a 19-16 UMSL lead in the first by closing on a 9-3 run and leading wire-to-wire in the second. The Tritons captured the third set, but the Greyhounds took control in the fourth with an 8-1 run. UMSL never got closer than four points the rest of the way. Santel led the Tritons with 19 kills in the loss, and Maggie Johnson added 16. UIndy ended UMSL’s 15-match winning streak and snapped a 24-match winning streak in GLVC play. The Tritons also ended their streak of 36 consecutive home victories in the regular season. UMSL (17-6, 9-1 GLVC) has three matches remaining in the regular season and will visit McKendree Friday in its only match of the week.
Men’s Golf
The 15th-ranked Tritons won their third straight tournament, finishing first in the Intercollegiate at Nemacolin, which wrapped up Wednesday at Mystic Rock Golf Course in Farmington, Pennsylvania. UMSL posted a combined score of 859 to edge runner-up Ashland by a single stroke. Findlay finished third, two shots of the lead. Trigg Lindahl led the Tritons to victory by claiming medalist honors with a 54-hole score of 8-under-par 208. He beat teammate and tournament runner-up Logan Mayo by four strokes. Dani Solavera tied for seventh with a total of 217, and Benjamin Berger also finished among the top 25 individuals with a total of 223. Coach Troy Halterman’s team is finished with its fall schedule and will return to competition when the spring season opens in February.
Women’s Golf
UMSL finished fourth in a 10-team field last Wednesday at the Intercollegiate at Nemacolin at Mystic Rock Golf Course in Farmington, Pennsylvania. The No. 19 Tritons posted a combined score of 912 and placed behind Findlay, Anderson and North Georgia. Mayan Covarrubias shot an even-par 72 in the final round to finish in a tie for fourth with a 54-hole score of 221. Alaina Ervin tied for 12th at 225, and Hillary Currier also placed in the top 25, posting a score of 231 for 22nd place. Findlay’s Emma Myers earned medalist honors with a 54-hole total score of 212 and won by three shots over her teammate Ashleigh Duflo. UMSL will wrap up the fall schedule when it hosts the Las Vegas Desert Classic Friday through Sunday at Boulder Creek Golf Course in Boulder City, Nevada.
Men’s and Women’s Swimming
The Tritons swept their dual meet against Quincy, with the women posting a 135.5-65.5 victory and the men winning 19.5-75.5 on Friday at St. Louis Community College–Forest Park. Justice Beard led the way as the women claimed nine of 11 events. Beard won the 500- and 1,000-yard freestyle races with times of 5 minutes, 5.04 seconds and 10:20.65, respectively. Audrey Lantz won the 50-yard freestyle in 25.12 seconds, Libby Smith won the women’s 400-yard individual medley in 4:45.90, and Danaka Tucker took first in the 200-yard butterfly in 2:13.59. UMSL also got first-place finishes from Ella Lantz in the 200-yard backstroke in 2:12.30 and Uxue Ortiz de Pinedo, who claimed the top spot in the 200-yard breaststroke in a time of 2:25.80. The Tritons swept the 200-yard medley and 200-yard freestyle relays. On the men’s side, UMSL won seven of 11 events. Gabriel Mostos won the 400 IM in 4:15.89. Mikael Larsson, Mattia Nardi and Kaleb Suitor claimed the top three spots in the 200 butterfly with Larsson posting a winning time of 1:54.84. Stellio Hasapis was the winner in the 200 freestyle, topping Donald Saunders in a time of 1:43.52. Lathan Parks won the 50-yard freestyle, posting a time of 21.13, and Henrique Silva took the top spot in the 100-yard freestyle in a time of 46.86 seconds. The Tritons also swept the 200-yard medley and 200-yard freestyle relays. They will next race on Saturday when they play host to Truman State at St. Louis Community College–Forest Park.
Men’s Tennis
Senior Giacomo Valerga won the Flight “B” consolation final to headline the UMSL contingent competing in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regionals, which wrapped up last Monday in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Valerga fell to Northwood’s Finn Buschmaas 6-4, 5-7, 10-7 in a match tiebreaker, but he came back to win five straight matches, including a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Quincy’s Gerard Puig in the final. Jose Yañez won a pair of matches before falling to Puig in the other side of the draw in the Flight “B” consolation tournament. Joan Garros had two wins in the Flight “C” tournament before losing to Rockhurst’s Dylan Rainwater. No other UMSL players managed more than one victory in the tournament.
