Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The fourth-ranked Northwood University (Fla.) women's soccer team pitched a clean sheet against visiting Cardinal Stritch University, 2-0, in a non-conference matchup at Arrigo-Vecellio Field Friday afternoon.
After controlling the contest from the opening whistle, the Lady Seahawks broke the scoreless tie in the 22nd minute of play as junior defender Sofia Kristensson (Vasteras, Sweden) launched a throw in into the Wolves box to the foot of sophomore forward Johanna Engberg (Stockholm, Sweden), who spun around a defender a fired a shot past Cardinal Stritch goalkeeper Kathleen Sauvey, to stake Northwood to a 1-0 lead.
With less than two minutes until the half, Cardinal Stritch was whistled on a handball inside their box, resulting in a penalty kick for Northwood. On the ensuing attempt, senior midfielder Amy Vaughan (Sheffield, England) delivered as she placed a shot to Sauvey's low left side, and into the back of the net, extending the Lady Seahawks lead to 2-0.
The Lady Seahawks dominated ball control during the contest, limiting the Wolves to just one shot, while racking up 22 shots of their own. Northwood senior goalie Matilda Hjalte (Falkenberg, Sweden) stopped the lone shot she faced, and Sauvey made a game-high 11 saves for Cardinal Stritch.
"It's nice to get another win and keep a clean sheet again," said Northwood Head Coach Mat Dunn. "It was another game, apart from the Embry-Riddle game, where we've dominated possession, dominated shot count and dominated corner kicks. We had 22 shots today, the keeper made 11 saves, and in our last game we had 23 shots and the keeper made 12 saves, so we're just not clicking in that final third. When it comes, I'll be sorry for whoever we are facing that day. We are going to stay positive, and build on two cleans, two wins and keep moving forward. We are getting better at communicating, our work rate is getting better, our fitness is getting better and it's helping us hold onto the ball. We had a lot of chances from 12 yards out today, and we need to turn those into goals. We need to take our chances when we have them, and take our chances earlier. I felt like we could've been up 3-0 in the early minutes, instead we aren't taking those chances and are waiting and waiting. I'd like to see us convert those chances we see in the first 10 minutes into goals."
Northwood improved to 2-4-1 on the season, while Cardinal Stritch dropped to 1-1 overall. The Lady Seahawks will return to the pitch when they travel to Georgia to face No. 17 Brenau Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is slated for 2:00 p.m.
NORTHWOOD SOCCER
