Women’s soccer setting ‘a new standard’ at ORU

Overcoming a half-time deficit Thursday night, Oral Roberts University beat Kansas City 2-1 to secure a spot in the Summit League Women’s Soccer Championship game this weekend.

The Golden Eagles will take on South Dakota State at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Case Soccer Complex.

The championship appearance will cap off ORU’s best season since 2013, but Summit League “Coach of the Year” Austin Risenhoover seems even more excited about the program’s future.

“This group has helped us create a new standard,” Risenhoover recently told the Oracle.“So the impact of this season will help in the standard of training, and in the standard of games, which helps us to continue to push forward.”

With a 6-1-1 Summit League record, and 12-4-2 overall, ORU earned a top seed in the conference’s post-season tournament. Risenhoover gives credit to a strong coaching staff and the power of a united team playing with Spirit-led discipline.

“It has been a blessing to lead because of the type of people they are,” he said. “Also, when you are in the middle of something special, you are not thinking or reminiscing about the special season, but about the next game that is to come.”

This season’s success started during the summer, when players decided to come back to comus on their own to begin practicing together.

“I will say the whole team does a great job, because the offense does a great job handling the ball and performing their task, said sophomore Precious Edosa. “On the other hand, we do our part in the drill, and we defend to protect. It is a win-win situation.”

Of course, success this season put pressure on the team to keep winning. “Pressure helps me out, but I manage it effectively,” said senior Julia Thasaphong, Summit League’s offensive player of the year. “I make it important and personal to me by embracing it. That pressure helped me score goals, not thinking about myself or the selfish outcome of this achievement, but I used it to score goals in memory of my teammates selflessly.”

The team scored more than 30 goals this season with an estimated 307 shots. While Thasaphong is capping off her college career, younger players have gained experience this season to propel the team forward in the years ahead, she said.

“Going against them every day in practice has been extremely beneficial,” Thasaphong said. “It reveals their true Christ-like character and demonstrates how well they are equipped to continue the journey even after I graduate. It just makes me better

every day, and I am grateful for that, because I do not just grow as a player, but we all grow together as a team.”