The Simpson College women’s soccer team (12-5-1, 7-2 A-R-C) secured the number 3 seed in the American Rivers Conference tournament for the second year in a row. The team is currently on a seven-game winning streak, the last one being against the Wartburg Knights in the second round of the postseason tournament on Nov. 2. 

One of the keys to their successful season has been the depth on the roster, according to Head Coach Jeremy Reinart.

“Depth of talent has been really crucial, it was a learning curve for us early in the season. Once we hit the midway point, we settled into who we were, found our identity and we’ve been really strong since then,” he said. 

Another vital part has been the performance of senior Cassie Nash. She is a nightmare for goalies having over 20 goals this season and has been named the A-R-C Offensive Player of the Week four out of nine times this season. 

“I attribute a lot of my success to my teammates and coaches,” Nash said. “It takes a team effort in order for me to score, the defense and goalie have to keep us in games, the midfield has to give me good looks and our coaches have a lot of confidence in me.”

Having a player like Nash allows the team to play with confidence and optimism and opens up other players on the team. 

Other standout players this year include Hailey Kowzan leading the team with 7 assists and goalkeeper Lani Mears with 58 saves so far. This past week, Mears was also just named A-R-C Defensive Player of the Week.

A lot of the success also comes from great team chemistry. A few setbacks early in the season allowed the team to gel together.

“My favorite part of this season is our team chemistry. We always have good chemistry during practices and in the locker room, but early in the season, there were nerves during games that hurt us,” Nash said. “Now that we’ve played enough games, we have great chemistry both on and off the field.” 

“Dominate” has been the team’s keyword since the middle of the season. 

“When we decide we want to dominate and take over, teams can’t play with us. We have to get ourselves in that mental state early, often and regularly where we want to dominate the match, not just play it,” Reinart said.

The Storm won 2-1 in overtime against Wartburg on Nov. 2 and will advance to the A-R-C Championship on Nov. 5 which will be against Loras at a time to be determined.