No. 25 Simpson grinds out scoreless draw at Saint Benedict

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – In a battle of two regionally-ranked opponents, the No. 25 Simpson College women's soccer team picked up its first draw of the season, playing to a 0-0 tie with Saint Benedict.

Lani Mears made eight saves in goal for the Storm (8-1-1), earning her fifth clean sheet of the year. Brissa Valadez led the Simpson offense with three shots, all of which were on target.

The Bennies (4-4-2) outshot their guests 15-11 and had to fend off a late push by Simpson as the Storm nearly broke the tie with a couple of close chances in the final minutes of the game. Kasey Shanahan had a shot in front of the goal go just wide of the post with 2:27 left and Valadez's shot off a last-second corner kick hit goalkeeper Madisen Carter's head before being cleared by the defense.

NOTES

• This was Simpson's first game that ended in a tie since last year's season opener against Illinois Wesleyan. The last time the Storm played to a scoreless draw was also in a season opener, this time against Dubuque during the 2020 season.
• The Storm, who outscored opponents 19-3 through nine games, were held scoreless for just the second time this season.
• This was just the fourth meeting between the two teams and first since 2009. Saint Benedict leads the series 2-1-1. 

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Simpson dives back into conference play, hosting Luther on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m.