Women’s First Team Wins UWS National Championship in 2-0 Victory Against New England Mutiny
- Andi Revesz
- Jul 21
- 3 min read
CHICAGO — Edgewater Castle’s Women’s First Team defeated New England Mutiny 2-0 Sunday afternoon at Hoyne Field, securing their title as United Women’s Soccer National Champions. Stellar defensive performances from Skyler Bierker and UWS MVP goalkeeper Lucy Clark held New England to a scoreless match.
Goals:
ECFC: Hall (A Egan) 11’, Leigh (A Stephens) 78’
First Half
Bierker started the match with two great defensive plays, stealing the ball from New England players. New England’s goalkeeper made the first save of the match in the third minute off of a shot from Kelsey Hamm on the right side.
The New England Mutiny took their first shot in the sixth minute, which went to the right of the net.
Kily Egan took a corner kick for the Rooks in the 11th minute and found Lauren Hall just inside the goal area. She jumped up in time to hit the ball with her head, sending it into the back of the net for the first goal of the game.
Ahead 1-0, the Rooks took three missed shots, while Clark recorded a save. Jocelyn Leigh drew a foul, awarding an unsuccessful New England free kick in the 20th minute.
The Rooks kept up their defense, stopping the continuous push from New England. Bierker stopped two more press attempts, while Katharine Stephens took a shot attempt with a header.
In the 44th minute, a New England player received a yellow card for holding. Hall took the free kick for the Rooks, ending the first half 1-0 in Edgewater Castle’s favor.
Second Half
New England jumped into the second half in full offensive force, the Mutiny recording five shot attempts in the opening five minutes. In the same span of time, Hall received a yellow card for a reckless tackle.
In the 69th minute, the Rooks finally gained possession with shots on goal from Stephens and Bierker.
Following two New England corner kicks and a save by Clark, Stephens found Leigh up the field. New England’s keeper came up to meet Leigh, who tapped the ball past her and into the back of the net for a 2-0 Rooks lead.
Another defensive play by Bierker and a failed corner kick by New England maintained the Rooks lead. As the clock went out, Edgewater Castle reigned victorious, coming out as 2025 UWS National Champions.
“This club, this team has been through a lot,” head coach Emma Woodley said to the team postgame. “I feel like this year, we just started going and we never stopped. This group is so important and special. I think this is a moment. The domination you guys did this summer. I had a lot of fun and didn’t know what to expect. I’m really proud of you guys and I knew early on that this team was something special.”
The Women’s First Team are set to compete for more silverware in their last game of the 2025 season. They will be competing in the ISSA Women’s State Cup final July 26th at 1:00 PM at Techny Park in Northbrook, Illinois.
