OU Rebounds with 2-0 Victory at Iowa

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The Sooners rebounded from their first loss of the season on Friday with a 2-0 win at Iowa on Sunday at the Iowa Soccer Complex. The game was initially delayed for over three hours after the Iowa City area was hit hard by rain and thunderstorms.

Seniors Michelle Enos and Lauren MacIver each scored their first goals of the season and provided enough offense to propel the Sooners, who recorded their second shutout of the season, to the victory.

With the win, OU improves to 3-1 while the Hawkeyes drop to 1-2-1 after the first ever meeting between the two. The Sooners finished the first annual Big 12/Big Ten Challenge with a 1-1 mark.

“Friday was tough, but the team was really up today and we played great,” said OU head coach Randy Evans. “Iowa is a very organized team and this was a good win for us. Now we are excited to return to Norman for a nice stretch of home games.”

Box Score: OU 2, Iowa 0 | Updated 2005 Stats

Enos put OU on the board in the 35th minute after she placed a volley in the back of the net past Iowa goalkeeper Lindsey Boldt. Tenesha Duncan recorded her first point of the year with the assist on Enos' strike. Duncan pinpointed a cross from the right side of the field that found Enos for the easy score.

At the half, OU led 1-0 and held an 11-4 advantage in the shot count.

OU wasted no time in the second half as Lauren MacIver gave the Sooners a 2-0 cushion just over two minutes into the half. At the 47:16 mark, MacIver blasted a shot, from 25 yards out, that sailed past Boldt.

The goal puts MacIver into a tie for seventh place on OU's all-time goals list, with 11 tallies, with current teammate Savannah Scott.

While the offense was rolling, the defense once again stepped up and limited the Hawkeyes' opportunities to score. The 2-0 lead was all sophomore goalkeeper Jennifer Nichols would need to collect the second shutout of her career. Last weekend, Nichols earned her first shutout en route to Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors. Nichols (3-1) faced eight shots from the Hawkeyes and made four saves. Her goals-against average dropped to 0.73 after today's win.

Duncan had a chance to put OU ahead 3-0 with a penalty kick at the 81:59 mark, but Boldt, who made eight saves in the game, guessed correctly to record the stop. The OU offense held the edge in shots and corner kicks over Iowa with 17-8 and 4-3 advantages, respectively.

The offense's production was a nice turnaround after Friday's loss to No. 16 Wisconsin. In that game, the Sooners were limited to four shots and were held scoreless for the first time this season by the Badgers.

On Sunday, MacIver and Lauren Harris led OU with four shots apiece, while Duncan, Enos and Allyson Kucera each contributed three strikes.

“It was great for Lauren (MacIver) to get her first goal, it was a great shot,” added Evans. “The ball movement we had today really set up a lot of chances for us to score. Our offense was able to get back to our game plan and we really executed nicely and played with more purpose. Tenesha and Lauren (Harris) also played great for us."

OU will return to action next weekend with a full slate of games at home. The weekend begins with Western Michigan on Friday, Sept. 9 at 7:30 p.m. and concludes on Sunday at noon against East Carolina. Both games will be held at John Crain Field and will mark the first-ever meetings for OU against WMU and ECU.

Next weekend begins a stretch that will see OU play at John Crain Field for three straight games and seven of the next eight.