No. 14 Women's Soccer Shuts Out Louisville

Saturday, October 1

Pittsburgh, PA

7:00 PM

Pitt

11-1-0, 4-0-0

Louisville

4-4-2, 1-3-0

Louisville

Pittsburgh

No. 14 Women's Soccer Shuts Out Louisville

10/1/2022 9:14:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score Gamebook (PDF)

PITTSBURGH - The No. 14-ranked Pitt women's soccer team (11-1-0, 4-0-0 ACC) battled through rainy conditions and shut out Louisville (4-4-2, 1-3-0 ACC), 1-0, Saturday at Ambrose Urbanic Field. The Panthers ran their winning streak to five in a row and have opened ACC play with four wins in four tries for the first time in program history.

The Panthers kept their best start overall in program history intact thanks to a header goal by Samiah Phiri off a corner opportunity in the 79th minute. Sarah Schupansky assisted on Phiri's goal.

"I usually don't score off corners, so this was surprising for me," Phiri said. "We've been working on set pieces for a long time, and we want to capitalize on them. We got one, and I put it away like I was supposed to."

Pitt dominated possession with a 63% rate as opposed to just 37% for the Cardinals. The Panthers held a decisive edge in shots at 14-6.

"Really happy about the performance in difficult playing conditions," head coach Randy Waldrum said. "It was great to get another goal off a set piece. I'm happy for Samiah. She's been so good for us in creating chances for others, so glad she got one herself tonight."

The first half of the game was played in torrential rain, with the Panthers logging four shots with none coming on goal.

It looked like Pitt's best chance had come in the 56th minute when Leah Pais sent a shot toward the top of the net, but Louisville goalkeeper Erynn Floyd got a fingertip on the ball to keep the Panthers off the scoreboard. Floyd made another save on a shot by Schupansky in the 70th minute. A shot by Emily Yaple hit the right post in the 79th minute, but Phiri cashed in for the Panthers with what proved to be the game winner 24 seconds later.

"It says we have a lot of heart," Phiri said of her team battling through tough conditions to get the win. "We all worked hard, even with the rain coming down and the turf being really slick. We just stuck to what we were taught and kept playing."

Phiri and Schupansky tied for a game-high three shots apiece while Pais provided two off the bench. Caitlyn Lazzarini made two saves in 90 shutout minutes.

Patricia Ward led Louisville with two shots while Ravin Alexander and Savina Zamborini each collected a shot on goal. Floyd finished with two saves.

UP NEXT
Pitt begins a stretch of three-straight road games, beginning with a visit to Chapel Hill, N.C. to clash with North Carolina next Thursday. The matchup is set for a 7 p.m. first touch and will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.

PITT NOTES

Pitt is now 42-35-1 under the leadership of fifth-year head Randy Waldrum. After going 9-22-4 in the first two years of a massive rebuild, Pitt has gone 33-15 over the last two-plus seasons.
The Panthers snapped a three-game losing streak against the Cardinals. Pitt defeated Louisville for the first time since a 1-0 road win on Sept. 27, 2015.
Pitt's third shutout victory of the 2022 season matches the 2020-21, '10 and 1999 squads for the third-most in a single season in program history.
Samiah Phiri scored a goal for the second time in her first season as a Panther.
Sarah Schupansky distributed her sixth assist of the season, tying her for the team lead. She has now tallied 12 career assists, upping her career point total to 36.
Caitlyn Lazzarini is now 19-7-0 in goal in her career, tying her with Morie Kephart (2007-10) and Jamie Pelusi (2002-05) for the most wins in program history.