THIBODAUX, La. — It was a weekend of mixed results for the Nicholls women's soccer team as the Colonels picked up a 2-1 victory over Stephen F. Austin on Thursday before falling 1-0 to East Texas A&M on Sunday at the Thibodaux Regional Sports Complex.

The two matchups showed both sides of what Nicholls has been capable of this season. Against Stephen F. Austin, the Colonels found ways to finish opportunities and build an early lead. Three days later, Nicholls struggled to turn offensive chances into goals, despite putting together a much stronger attacking effort in the second half.

The split moved Nicholls to 4-4-6 overall and 2-1-3 in Southland Conference play.



Rispone Leads Nicholls Past Stephen F. Austin

Thursday's matchup against Stephen F. Austin belonged to Angelina Rispone, who scored twice in a span of just over three minutes to give Nicholls the advantage it needed.

The Colonels came into the matchup looking to remain unbeaten in conference play, and although the opening 30 minutes were scoreless, Nicholls was beginning to create opportunities offensively.

Kate Guillory forced a save from Stephen F. Austin goalkeeper Brandie Musser in the 11th minute, while Rispone and Alyssa Wheeler also generated scoring chances during the opening half.

Nicholls finally broke through in the 34th minute when Rispone found the back of the net off an assist from Kaylie Harris, giving the Colonels a 1-0 lead.

Just over three minutes later, Rispone struck again, scoring her second goal of the evening in the 37th minute to put Nicholls ahead 2-0.

Those two goals would ultimately prove to be the difference.

Nicholls entered halftime with a 5-2 advantage in shots and appeared to have control of the matchup. However, Stephen F. Austin wasn't ready to go away.

The Ladyjacks began generating more opportunities in the second half, but Nicholls continued to put pressure on the SFA defense.

In the 54th minute, both Jezlyn Nelson and Olyvia Pugh had shots stopped by the Ladyjacks' defense, preventing Nicholls from extending its lead.

Stephen F. Austin eventually found the scoreboard in the 85th minute when Sawyer Kohutek converted a penalty kick, cutting the Nicholls advantage to 2-1.

Despite the late goal, Nicholls held on over the final minutes to secure its second conference victory of the season.

The Colonels finished the match with a 10-7 advantage in shots, including seven shots on goal compared to three for Stephen F. Austin.

Rispone led the way with three shots, two on goal, and both Nicholls goals. Harris recorded the assist on the opening goal, while goalkeeper Aislinn Wright finished with two saves.

The victory improved Nicholls to 4-3-6 overall and 2-0-3 in conference play, keeping the Colonels unbeaten through their first five Southland matchups.

East Texas A&M Hands Nicholls First Conference Loss

Following Thursday's victory, Nicholls returned to the field Sunday afternoon looking to build on its conference momentum against East Texas A&M.

Instead, the Colonels were handed their first Southland Conference loss of the season in a 1-0 defeat.

Unlike Thursday's matchup, where Nicholls was able to capitalize on opportunities in the opening half, Sunday proved to be a much more difficult afternoon offensively.

East Texas A&M controlled much of the early attacking opportunities, outshooting Nicholls 4-1 in the first half.

The Lions forced Wright into two saves during the opening 18 minutes, both coming on attempts from Allyson Reed.

Nicholls struggled to generate much offensive pressure before halftime, with Olivia Holmes recording the Colonels' lone shot of the opening 45 minutes.

The match remained scoreless heading into the break, but the second half brought a noticeable change in the Nicholls attack.

The Colonels became much more aggressive offensively, generating eight shots over the final 45 minutes.

However, while Nicholls was finding more opportunities, East Texas A&M was creating dangerous chances of its own.

Wright was called upon several times in the second half, making four additional saves to keep the match scoreless.

The deciding moment came in the 68th minute when Kristen Sueltz scored off an assist from Reed, putting East Texas A&M ahead 1-0.

With just over 22 minutes remaining, Nicholls needed to find an answer.

The Colonels responded with several attacking opportunities, including a shot from Nelson in the 73rd minute that was saved by East Texas A&M goalkeeper Emmy Finlinson.

Nicholls continued attacking, with Angelina Rispone, Alyssa Wheeler, Kate Guillory and Kaylie Harris all recording attempts during the closing stretch.

Unfortunately for the Colonels, none of those chances found the back of the net.

East Texas A&M held on for the 1-0 victory, handing Nicholls its first conference defeat.

The Lions finished with a narrow 10-9 advantage in total shots, but the biggest difference came in shots on goal. East Texas A&M placed seven shots on target, while Nicholls managed just one.

Wright finished with six saves in the loss, while Finlinson needed only one save to secure the shutout.

The Difference Between the Two Matches

When looking at both matchups, the biggest difference for Nicholls wasn't necessarily the number of scoring opportunities. It was the ability to finish those opportunities.

Against Stephen F. Austin, Nicholls recorded 10 shots and put seven on goal, finding the back of the net twice.

Against East Texas A&M, the Colonels finished with nine shots but managed to put only one on target.

That's a significant difference for a team that was looking to remain unbeaten in conference play.

The Colonels certainly showed they could create scoring chances in both games, particularly during the second half against East Texas A&M. But generating shots and putting those shots on goal are two different things.

Another takeaway from the weekend was the play of Wright in goal. The Nicholls goalkeeper finished with eight saves across the two matches, including six against East Texas A&M. Without several of those saves Sunday, the final score could have looked much different.

Defensively, Nicholls allowed just two goals across 180 minutes of soccer, one of which came on a penalty kick against Stephen F. Austin.

That is something the Colonels can build on as conference play continues.

What's Next for Nicholls?

The Colonels now sit at 4-4-6 overall and 2-1-3 in Southland Conference play.

Although Sunday's loss was disappointing, Nicholls still managed to earn three points during the two-match stretch.

The question moving forward will be whether the Colonels can find more consistency offensively.

Thursday showed what Nicholls can accomplish when it takes advantage of its scoring opportunities. Sunday showed how quickly a match can get away when those opportunities aren't converted.

With Southland Conference play continuing, every point becomes increasingly important as teams battle for positioning ahead of the conference tournament.

For Nicholls, the defensive effort has provided opportunities to compete, but turning offensive pressure into goals will be a major factor in determining how the Colonels finish the regular season.

The Colonels have shown they can compete in the Southland. Now the challenge is finding a way to turn more of those competitive performances into victories.