Goals from sophomore Abby Welker and senior Ceci Dapino helped the sixth-ranked Case Western Reserve University women's soccer team play to a 2-2 draw on the road at the fifth-ranked University of Chicago on Saturday afternoon.

The Spartans now stand at 11-1-2 on the season, including a 1-1-1 mark in University Athletic Association play. The Spartans handed the Maroons their first blemish of their conference schedule, as Chicago moved to 2-0-1 in league games and to 11-0-2 overall.

Stats and Standouts

• Welker struck for the second-straight game and the fourth time overall this season, scoring off an assist from senior Mackenzie Mueller.

• Dapino added her ninth goal of the season, second among Spartan players in 2025, as are her 21 points. She now has three goals in UAA play this season.

• Senior Mackenzie Mueller assisted on both goals, her first two assists of the campaign. She now has eight points for the campaign.

• Sophomore goalkeeper Ellie Palaian played all 90 minutes and made three saves in the game. She has played every minute in goal for the Spartans this season, going 11-1-2 with a 0.50 goals-against average.

First Half

• Mueller set up the first goal of the game with a play in the defensive half of the field, spinning around a defender and launching a long ball forward. Welker, who checked in less than four minutes earlier, beat the defender to the ball and was able to get a low shot past the Chicago keeper to put CWRU ahead 1-0 at the 27:36 mark.

• Just under six minutes later, the Maroons evened the score as Mary Stuart Kerrigan headed in a corner kick by Annabel Edwards.

• Chicago finished the first half with a 2-1 edge in shots on goal.

Second Half

• The Spartans regained the lead early in the second half. Senior Jamie Goldfarb stepped in front of an attempt by Chicago to clear the ball, deflecting it toward Mueller just in front of midfield, who sent another perfect leading pass ahead, this time to Dapino. Dapino took the pass behind the defense and beat the keeper one-on-one to give CWRU the 2-1 advantage at the 50:00 mark.

• CWRU's lead was short-lived, however. The Spartans were called for a foul in the 52nd minute just outside the 18-yard box and to the left of the middle of the field. Chicago's Lucy Harrison-Caldwell took the resulting free kick and sent it just out of Palaian's reach to knot the game at 2-2.

• Despite late attempts on goal by senior Molly Shamah in the 84th minute and senior Alexis Sassower in the 89th minute, the game ended in a stalemate.

• CWRU held a 3-2 edge in shots on goal during the second half.

Spartan Notes

• Saturday's game was the third in a stretch of seven-ranked opponents for the Spartans, all of which are UAA contests.

• CWRU stands at 1-1-2 against nationally-ranked opponents this season.

• The Spartans are 3-1-3 in their last seven games against Chicago dating back to the 2019 campaign and are now 8-23-6 all-time against the Maroons. 

• Dapino's nine goals this season match her career total entering the campaign. She now has 18 goals and 12 assists for 48 points over her collegiate career.

Up Next

The Spartans will continue conference play next weekend when the team travels east for a pair of games. The Spartans are slated to face 13th-ranked Brandeis on Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Waltham, Massachusetts, before heading to Newark, New Jersey, to take on 25th-ranked NYU at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.