#18 Women's Soccer Battles Back to Prevail at Saint Anselm
MANCHESTER, NH- The #18 Merrimack women's soccer team pulled off a come-from-behind 2-1 victory at Saint Anselm Wednesday afternoon. The Warriors reach 5-0-0 on the season and 3-0-0 in the Northeast-10 Conference with the win, marking their best start since 2006. The Hawks descend to 0-3-1 overall and 0-2-1 in league action.
Saint Anselm netted the game's opening goal in the 18th minute as Katie Oldfield tallied her first of the season, giving the home team a 1-0 edge.
Merrimack responded with an equalizer in the 42nd minute. Sami Brady (Rockland, MA) registered her first collegiate goal to level the match at 1-1.
The two teams stood at a stalemate after the first half with each side scoring once. The Warriors dominated the shots category with 12 bids in the opening 45 minutes while the Hawks mustered just two.
Merrimack didn't wait long to claim the lead in the second half as Jenna Zechner (Billerica, MA) found the back of the net 1:03 into play. Sarah Coakley (Medway, MA) fired a shot on frame that was saved by the goalkeeper but created a rebound which Zechner pounced on and buried into the goal. Zechner's team-leading third goal of the season boosted the Warriors ahead in the match, 2-1.
The visitors held onto the lead for the remainder of the game to extend their winning-streak to five matches.
Merrimack finished the contest with a 19-9 edge in shots and 5-4 in corner kicks.
Kiley Horne (Scituate, MA) recorded three saves to earn her fifth win of the 2011 campaign. Gabriella Primera stopped six shots on the day for the Hawks.
"We came out a little shaky but I felt like we did a great job of settling down and getting a goal before the half," said head coach Gabe Mejail. "We started the second half with a high level of energy and we put a ton of pressure on them early which allowed us to score a quick goal."
Merrimack remains on the road as it travels to Springfield, MA to go up against American International September 17 at 4 pm.
