Box Score
 
NEWARK, NJ—Defending Great West Conference women's soccer champion Houston Baptist used a goal late in the first half to defeat host NJIT, 1-0, in the final quarterfinal game of the Great West Conference women's soccer tournament Friday night on Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium.
 
Houston Baptist (10-7-1), the number two seed, advances to face #3 South Carolina State in one of the semifinals at NJIT on Saturday at 7 pm. Utah Valley, the regular season GWC champion, received a bye into the semis and will face #5 North Dakota on Saturday at 4:30 pm.
 
Earlier on Friday, North Dakota defeated #4 Howard, 2-0, and South Carolina State nipped #6 Delaware State, 1-0.
 
The only goal of the NJIT-Houston Baptist game came in the 40th minute.
 
Molly Missimer, a 2011 first-team all-conference honoree for HBU, scored at 39:20 on a flat-footed floating header from eight yards out with her back to the goal. The marker was set up on a long free kick into the box from near midfield by her twin sister Kelsey Missimer, who was all-GWC second team. The goal was Molly's sixth of the year and Kelsey earned her second assist.
 
The final shot totals showed the Huskies with a 19-6 overall advantage, including 7-1 in shots on goal. However, the game was closer than that in terms of territory and possession, with HBU attempting some long tries on the offensive end, while the Huskies defense was strong in the final third, breaking up most NJIT attacks before the ball got close enough for a shot. The Highlanders finished with a 3-2 edge in corner kicks.
 
Houston Baptist sophomore Patty Walrath went the distance in goal, making one save and raising her personal record to 4-0 in five appearances. The shutout was her second of the season and her second against NJIT (she also beat the Highlanders 1-0 in the regular season finale on October 29 in Houston).
 
The Highlanders used two goalkeepers. Sophomore Anna Kornmuller started and played the opening half, during which she allowed the goal and made three saves. Freshman Amanda Murray came on at halftime and made three saves for NJIT.
 
NJIT wraps up the 2011 season, its first under head coach Sergio Gonzalez, with a 2-17 record.
 
“It was a great game,” said Gonzalez. “It was a hard-fought battle between two teams who knew what was on the line. I'm proud of the way we worked and you have to give credit to Houston Baptist. They're a good team and they handled what we threw at them.”
 
Reflecting on where his team is after his first season at the helm, Gonzalez, who became head coach in late March, remains optimistic. “When I think back to where we were when we started this journey, I'm proud of the progress we've made, even though it didn't show in our won-lost record,” said the coach. “I'm excited about where we're going to go, both with the players who are here and with the players who are going to be coming in.”