UE women’s soccer goal keepers stand the test early

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) — Through two games so far this season, both of the University of Evansville active goal keepers have proven they are trustworthy in the net. Hawaii transfer, Bri Chirpich got the first start of the year for the Purple Aces against Purdue. In the game against the Boilermakers, she recorded nine saves on 31 shots faced. That game ended in a 1-1 tie. With Chirpich out with an injury last week, sophomore Emma Nathans got the start in UE's home opener against Southeast Missouri State. She finished with two saves on nine shots faced in a 2-0 shutout of the Redhawks. Head coach Chris Pfau said he's confident the defense will be a strength this year and the players in the net will be a big reason why. "You get banged up a little bit and all this stuff and also mentally," said Coach Pfau. "It's a long season mentally and keeping focus on that. And now there's some expectation on winning, so that's a different challenge for our keepers and not making a mistake. We knew what we were going to get in Bri, she's a fifth year senior. So we knew we were going to get the maturity, we saw that up at Purdue. In a tough environment come out and play one of the best games I've seen in a long time from a goal keeper. And then Emma doing what she needed to do at home. You know calming us down, using her feet well, was a presence there. And when she needed to make a save, she was able to make that save for us." Chirpich was able to go through practice Monday, but no word yet on who will start for Evansville on Thursday, August 27th, against Lindenwood at 6 p.m. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Eyewitness News (WEHT/WTVW).