Griz play to draw with Bluejays, conditions

Thursday, August 18

Missoula, Mont.

4 PM

Montana

0-0-1

Creighton

0-0-1

Creighton

Montana

8/18/2022 8:05:00 PM | Soccer

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By: Montana Sports Information

On a late Thursday afternoon in Missoula that approached 100 degrees, the Montana soccer team played to a 0-0 draw with Creighton in the season opener for both teams.

The match was the second of the day as the Rumble in the Rockies opened at South Campus Stadium.

Pittsburgh kicked off the tournament earlier Thursday with a 1-0 victory over Gonzaga on a goal in the 57th minute that would be the only score of the afternoon over 180 minutes of action.

Montana's match against Creighton came 364 days after opening its NCAA tournament season of 2021 with an overtime loss against the Bluejays on their home field in Omaha, Neb.

Creighton outshot Montana in that match 19-7 and looked superior despite the closeness of the result.

One year later, against a team that has all 11 of its starters back, the Grizzlies mostly neutralized the Bluejays, particularly in the opening half when Creighton could muster only a single shot.

"Considering what they did to us last season when we went to their place, when they were the better team, it's nice to see we've taken some steps forward," said Griz coach Chris Citowicki.

"To be that tactically disciplined and put that much effort into our shape and then still be able to create chances out of it, I was extremely impressed."

Montana's best chance to come away with the victory came in the opening half, when the Grizzlies outshot the Bluejays 5-1 and had 55 percent of the possession.

Ally Henrikson took a pair of shots in the first half, McKenzie Kilpatrick, Molly Massman and Allie Larsen each took one.

Massman put a header off the crossbar in the second half but it was Creighton that had the advantage over the final 45 minutes in both possession and shots.

"When we tried things in the second half, we rushed them. We could have been better in the second half at creating chances," said Citowicki.

"We had our good ones in the first half. We should have taken them."

The game was played in the hottest part of the day, starting at 4 p.m. and ending just before 6 p.m. Citowicki went just five players into his bench.

Larsen and Charley Boone both played all 90 minutes in support of goalkeeper Camellia Xu, who made five saves to record career shutout No. 12.

"It was an unselfish performance from every single person on the team," said Larsen. "We really came together as a team against an opponent who has been very good.

"It came down to our team taking care of each other. You have the bench cheering us on and running water out to you now and again. The team almost made the elements go away."

Montana will face a different type of challenge on Sunday, when the Grizzlies face Pittsburgh at 4 p.m.

The Panthers are led by dynamic forward Amanda West, who was the best player on the field on Thursday.

She played 84 minutes and took four shots, putting three on goal. Her game-winner was the 34th goal of her career.

"That match will be different from this one. This was a possession-based team that we slowed down. Pittsburgh is a team that uses movement to unlock space to attack you very quickly," said Citowicki.

"They use tactics that allow a special player to drift around the field and find the ball wherever she wants it and creates problems. It will be a different challenge but I'm looking forward to it."

Montana outshot Creighton 9-7 on Thursday, generated five corner kicks to the Bluejays' two and finished with a time-of-possession advantage.

"Overall, really happy," said Citowicki. "To open against Creighton and get out of it with a tie and the stats look the way they did and for us to play the way we did and put in the effort we did, I loved it.

"Both teams were wilting in this heat but still worked really hard. Talk about a fun opening game."

Creighton will face Gonzaga at 1 p.m. on Sunday, followed by the Montana-Pittsburgh match at 4 p.m.