EAU CLAIRE - The top-seeded UW-Eau Claire women's soccer team cruised past #8 seed UW-Platteville in today's opening round of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Tournament with a 3-0 shutout.

The defense took over the game and did not allow a single Pioneer shot the entire match. It also marked the 14th shutout of the year, tying the squad with last year's team for most shutouts in a season.

The 18th ranked Blugolds did not waste any time taking control of the game. At 2:40, Liz Kooistra (So.-Lakeville, MN) took a rebound off a header and found net for her first goal of the game. Emily Meisinger (Sr.-Green Bay/Notre Dame Academy) and Amy Smith (So.-Bloomington, MN/Jefferson) were credited with the assists.

Kooistra struck again at 14:24, this one also off a rebound. Her second score was unassisted. The teams went into halftime with Eau Claire leading in shots by a 16-0 margin.

The score remained 2-0 until 78:22 when Jessica Millard (So.-Madison/La Follette) took a Sam Krueger (Fr.-Elkhorn) pass and netted the third and final Blugold goal of the day.

In the end Eau Claire outshot Platteville 34-0. Millard had six of the team's shots with Kooistra and Smith right behind her with five each.

Pioneer goalie Laurie Trifone made eight saves on the day while Allie Rivard (So.-Plymouth, MN/Wayzata) and Liz Weirick (Jr.-Kenosha/Tremper) let the defense in front of them protect the net. The Pioneers were whistled for 10 fouls while the Blugolds had six.

The 19-2-0 Eau Claire team marches on to the WIAC Semifinal, where it will face UW-River Falls. The fourth-seeded Falcons defeated #5 seed UW-La Crosse 1-0 in quarterfinal play. The Blugolds played River Falls October 21st and won 3-0.

The Semifinal match will start at 11:00 a.m. Friday at Bollinger Fields.

Eau Claire-Platteville WIAC Quarterfinal Box Score

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