Dowell's first collegiate goal lifts No. 25 UMHB women's soccer to 1-0 victory over UW-Whitewater

Photo by Russell Marwitz/True To The Cru/russellmarwitz.com

DULUTH, Minn.- In her UMHB debut, Jayme Dowell provided the scoring difference, lifting the Mary Hardin-Baylor women’s soccer team to a season-opening 1-0 victory over UW-Whitewater.

The transfer from D-II Central Oklahoma netted a goal in the 21st minute of Friday evening’s contest, breaking the 0-0 tie and putting the Crusaders in the lead for good. She intercepted a UW-Whitewater pass near the left side of the 18-yard box, dodged one Warhawk defender right away, before skillfully maneuvering the ball away from two more UW-Whitewater defenders and setting up for a shot, nearly lined up center with the goal.

Her strike from about 20 yards out found its way past the outstretched arms of UW-Whitewater goalkeeper Jude Dobrinksa, who dove to her right. It marked the first goal of Dowell’s collegiate career.

Here is a look at the go-ahead goal from Jayme Dowell tonight, which gave @CruWomensSoccer a 1-0 victory over UW-Whitewater! #gocru pic.twitter.com/Wbq7IkKB6C
— True To The Cru (@TrueToTheCru) September 2, 2023

UMHB finished the match with 15 shots to UW-Whitewater’s five, with eight of those 15 being shots on the goal. Only one of Whitewater’s shots was on frame, and it was saved by UMHB goalkeeper Ainsley Westlake.

Match Notes

UMHB is now 2-0 vs UW-Whitewater in program history, having beaten the Warhawks in last year’s season opener, 3-0.
- Notably, both matches have been played at neutral sites. Friday’s contest was played on the campus of the College of St. Scholastica, and the 2022 matchup was contested at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene.
The win marks UMHB’s fourth straight season-opening shutout, as The Cru defensive effort has been terrific year after year. In each of the last four seasons, UMHB has outscored its opposition 10-0 in the first match of the year.
Mackenzie Worthy played 66 minutes in Friday’s win, and was in the starting lineup for the 24th straight game. The senior forward has started every game UMHB has played since Oct. 29, 2021.
Additionally, senior midfielder Kelsey White started her 36th career game for UMHB, and played 79 minutes on Friday.
The victory over UW-Whitewater marked UMHB’s 12th straight non-conference win. The last time the Crusaders dropped a regular season non-conference match came on Sept. 7, 2021, when Southwestern prevailed, 1-0.

Up Next

UMHB battles St. Scholastica on Sunday at 11 a.m. in Duluth. St. Scholastica is looking to bounce back after dropping their season opener to Hardin-Simmons, 8-0, on Friday.