The men’s and women’s soccer teams posted big victories last week against Bethel and St. Mary’s respectively.

On Tuesday, the women’s team gave John Leaney his 400th win as head coach with a one-sided 6-0 victory at home against St. Mary’s. The Scots dominated the game, outshooting their opponents 35 to 0. Meghan Leahey ’06 scored two goals while Katie Pastorius ’06 contributed a goal and two assists. Sarah Oviatt ’04, Maddy Ruegg ’07 and Annie Borton ’07 also added one apiece. The Scots posted their sixteenth consecutive conference shut-out.

From the opening whistle, the Scots tested St. Mary’s goalie Emily Strom, but were unable to convert their effort into goals. The deadlock remained until the 22nd minute when Leahey scored off a pass from Pastorius. Less than five minutes later Macalester doubled its lead when Pastorius struck the back of the net. To finish the half, Oviatt scored in the 37th minute and Ruegg added yet another goal two minutes from half-time.

The Scots kept up the level of play in the second half. Borton added her name to the score sheet with a strike in the 53rd minute and Leahey piled on a sixth goal with an effort in the 62nd.

The win gave Macalester a 3-0-1 record to start the season, and will probably result in a rise in their national ranking from their current 16th place. “We’re much, much better than last year. The midfield is a lot more creative than last year and the forwards are a lot quicker,” Leahey said. “We have a lot more depth. The people who came off the bench are all really good.”

Leahey expects the team to have a successful season. “Steven’s Point is ranked tenth. We beat them. We dominated that game,” she said. “As long as we move the ball, we can compete with all the top teams.”

The men, meanwhile, brought their season record to 2-2. They won 3-1 last Friday at Bethel in their conference opener. Andrew Wissler ’06, Joe Wertz ’06 and Brendan Viele ’05 each scored.

The first half ended 1-0 after Wissler’s strike in the 20th minute. After All-Conference forward Viele doubled their lead in the second half, the Scots allowed their first goal since 2001 when Bethel substitute Ryan Dorn found the back of the net for the Royals ten minutes from full time. Wertz sealed the victory with his second goal of the season with less than three minutes to go.

Late on Wednesday, the Scots posted their second MIAC victory with a 3-0 shutout against St. Mary’s in Winona, Minn. Wertz scored once in each half and Robbie Swick ’05 added a third. Forward Scott Beaver ’06 had two assists.