FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern was forced to wait an extra 90 minutes due to weather before the start of Sunday's match against Johnson & Wales (Fla.), but once the opening whistle sounded the Sharks couldn't be slowed much longer. Using three goals in the second half, Nova Southeastern flexed its muscle over its NAIA counterpart, earning a 4-0 victory at the NSU Soccer Complex.
Despite being just 24 hours removed from their key 3-2 win on the road over Sunshine State Conference foe Tampa, the Sharks showed no signs of weariness in their fourth consecutive 'W' and fifth in a row at home to begin the year. Four different players tallied one-goal apiece in the effort, while the defense failed to surrender a single shot the entire 90 minutes.
"We got to take a look at a lot of different players that haven't been getting much playing time," said Sharks' head coach
John Constable. "You can't be successful over the course of the season with just 11 players. The depth was certainly there tonight. I thought we played fantastic soccer. It might've been one of our best passing performances of the season."
Myriah Troutman, one of nine freshmen to start the match, opened the scoring for Nova Southeastern in the ninth minute. A lofted ball into the box was deflected off the crossbar by Wildcats' keeper Ashley Buchanan, landing at the feet of Troutman, who finished the rest from there.
The Sharks' dominant play continued, but still led just 1-0 in the 55
th minute. The score soon grew to 2-0, however, thanks to
Alexys Nowak. Utilizing her speed on the wing all match long, Nowak beat her defender down the left sideline once more before converting her second goal of the season on a beautiful shot towards the right upper 90 of the net.
Jessica Bendetti would later add some insurance in the 82
nd minute on an assist from teammate
Kaitlyn Colletti. Adding the icing on the cake,
Victoria Hollamon then cashed in on a penalty kick to erase any sort of doubt in the minds of Shark fans.
Following the victory, NSU has now outscored its opponents by a notable 14-2 margin at home thus far in 2016.
The Sharks will put their perfect home record to the test when they welcome Embry-Riddle to the NSU Soccer Complex this Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET. For complete coverage of the action, visit
NSUSharks.com and click on the provided links on the
schedule page.
