Junior Grace Ehlert’s 13th goal of the season gave WashU an early 2-0 lead against Simpson. (Alan Knight | Multimedia Editor)

Twelve minutes into their NCAA tournament second round matchup against Simpson College, the No. 1 WashU women’s soccer team found the back of the net. Just 18 seconds of play later — after junior forward Grace Ehlert danced past the Simpson defense — the Bears found themselves up 2-0.

With their two early goals, the Bears lit a flame that never went out. The Bears added three more goals before halftime, and despite conceding a goal mid-way through the second half, defeated the Simpson Storm 5-1. Just a day after kicking off their playoff campaign with a 2-0 victory over DePauw University, the Bears locked up a spot in the round of 16 for the eighth season in a row.

“Anytime you jump on a team that quickly, it changes the game, it lets us play a little freer,” head coach Jim Conlon said after the game. “Our defense did a fantastic job of making sure to execute [and] minimizing their chances.”

WashU will face Colby College in the Round of 16 on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 11 a.m in St. Louis. After playing their opening games in front of an energetic Francis Field crowd, the Bears, who are a perfect 10-0 at home, will hope to continue the momentum on their home turf. The winner of that matchup will face No. 5 Messiah University or the University of Chicago on Nov. 24 with a spot in the Final Four in Las Vegas on the line.

First Round – WashU v. DePauw

When WashU played DePauw in September, they scored a goal in the first two minutes and won 4-0. This time around, the Bears faced more of a challenge. While WashU dominated offensively, they were unable to convert their early chances.

First-year Olivia Clemons, who leads WashU with 19 goals, attempts to round the DePauw goalkeeper. (Bri Nitsberg | Managing Photo Editor)

However, in the 20th minute, senior Gaelen Clayton, who leads the Bears with seven assists, crossed a ball into a crowded box. Sophomore Sophie Viscovich found the ball and slotted it into the net to put WashU ahead 1-0. 

“Sophie’s a great attacking player,” Conlon said after the game. “She links a lot of pieces together. She’s found herself in good spaces to score recently, and so she’s decided to shoot instead of pass.”

The Bears’ next goal did not come until the 74th minute, when first-year Olivia Clemons broke past a DePauw defender to notch her 18th goal of the season.

The scoreline stayed at 2-0 until the final whistle, thanks to the Bears’ defensive dominance. They held the Tigers to just three shots, compared to WashU’s 19. Graduate student goalkeeper Sidney Conner played all 90 minutes and recorded her 41st career shutout, the most in program history.

Second Round – WashU v. Simpson

Less than 24 hours later, the Bears were back on the field against Simpson. WashU got off to an early lead twelve minutes into the match, when graduate student defender Ally Hackett bundled home a rebound after a diving save by Simpson’s goalkeeper. Before the Simpson defense could catch its breath, Ehlert drove right through the Storm backline to double the Bears’ lead.

The Bears kept up their pressure on Simpson’s backline, and in the 15th minute, senior Meryl McKenna’s strike was redirected to Viscovich, who cleaned up the rebound to give WashU a 3-0 lead. Viscovich added her second goal of the game 12 minutes later, unleashing a rocket from outside the box that beat the keeper and nestled itself under the crossbar. Viscovich is second on the team with six assists and has tallied five goals, all of which have come in the last month.

Sophomore Sophie Viscovich scored three goals over the weekend, including a long-distance strike against Simpson. (Alan Knight | Multimedia Editor)

Right before the halftime break, the Bears found a fifth goal, when Clemons burst past a pair of Simpson defenders and snuck the ball past the Simpson keeper. In just her first collegiate season, Clemons now has 19 goals, the fourth most in a single season in WashU history.

In the second half, Simpson came out with more momentum, and finally found their first goal of the match in the 64th minute. After a diving save by Conner, Simpson midfielder Julia Wagoner headed the ball into the net on the ensuing corner kick.  Wagoner’s goal was only the seventh tally that WashU has conceded this season.

Despite the second-half hiccup, WashU’s defense played well, keeping Simpson’s potent attack to just one goal. Though Hackett was rested for most of the game, senior Emma Riley McGahan stepped up as the leader of the Bears defense, playing the full 90 minutes just a day after logging 82 against DePauw.

“I think we have a lot of leaders on our team. Ally [Hackett], I’ve learned from her every single day. I learn from Sid [Conner], our goalkeeper, and the other two center backs – [senior Olivia Foster] and [sophomore] Regan [Cannon] were ready to step in when they were needed too,” McGahan said after the game. 

In her seventh straight start, Foster played 84 minutes, making key interventions to keep Simpson at bay, and Cannon provided crucial support off the bench. The Bears’ well-rounded defensive unit helped the Bears hold on to a 5-1 scoreline against Simpson.

“Our team is so deep, one of the best things about our team this year [is] every single girl deserves to be on that field,” McGahan said. “Every single girl is so talented, so I don’t have any doubt in my mind. No matter who’s on the field, we’re gonna take care of business.”

Sweet 16

With two wins in their back pocket, the Bears now turn their attention to the Round of 16 against Colby College, a team who they’ve never played before. Colby boasts a 13-4-3 record, and is in their first-ever Sweet 16 after upsetting No. 3 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

If WashU beats Colby, the Bears would face a familiar opponent — either Chicago or Messiah — with a trip to Las Vegas on the line. The Bears tied Chicago for the fifth season in a row in the last game of the regular season, and they have a storied tournament history against Messiah, including a penalty shootout win in last year’s Final Four.

As the Bears prepare for a new opponent, McGahan said the team is just focused on playing their best.

“I think just focus on us,” she said about the team’s approach to the Sweet 16. “That’s what we do every single game. Just sharpening our toolbox a little bit, making sure that we just get better and better each game, focusing on our skill set and knowing what we’re good at and just building off [that].”