FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Held scoreless through the first 45 minutes on Saturday, No. 20 Nova Southeastern erupted in the second half en route to a decisive 3-1 win over Rollins.
Emma Heikkila sparked the offensive onslaught with her second goal of the season before
Alexys Nowak and
Hannah Christophe added the exclamation points on the Sharks' third Sunshine State Conference victory in as many tries.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: Nova Southeastern 3, Rollins 1
Records: Nova Southeastern (7-1, 3-0 SSC), Rollins (2-5-1, 1-2-1 SSC)
Location: NSU Soccer Complex | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Get Social: Twitter - @NSU_WSoccer | Instagram - @nsu_wsoccer | Facebook - /nsusoccer
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Outside of a Monica Orteu shot attempt that struck the crossbar in the 25th minute, Nova Southeastern's scoring opportunities were rather limited in the opening half as both sides entered intermission knotted up at 0-0.
- Head coach John Constable's halftime speech clearly did the trick, though, after the Sharks returned to the pitch recharged. Another unlucky shot off the post, this time by Nowak, kept Nova Southeastern off the board in the 53rd minute. However, the momentum continued to gradually build until Heikkila managed to break through in the 66th minute on a strike that ricocheted of the arms of Rollins keeper Kelly Rowswell and into the net.
- With Rollins desperately trying to equalize, the Tars earned a penalty kick in the 78th minute following a collision inside the box. However, Ally Rost's attempt missed high and wide, allowing the Sharks to breathe a huge sigh of relief.
- Like most good teams do, Nova Southeastern certainly made Rollins pay for squandering the scoring chance. Still in front 1-0, the Sharks doubled their lead in the 84th minute after Nowak ended up on the receiving end of an Orteu corner kick.
- Less than five minutes later, Christophe provided the dagger for the Sharks, cutting a right-footed missile across the box and past a diving Rowswell.
- Rollins evaded the shutout in the final nine seconds, but Nova Southeastern's flurry of goals were more than plenty in what resulted in win number seven on the season.
STATS OF THE NIGHT:
- Keeper Jordan Lentz added three saves in the effort, running her season total to 29, after entering 2017 with a combined 40 during the past three years.
- Following a bit of a slow start to the season, Christophe notched her first goal of 2017 in Saturday's win. The forward finished with a team-high 10 a year ago on her way to SSC Freshman of the Year honors.
- With three more goals against Rollins, the Sharks became the first SSC team to reach the 20-goal mark this season.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- Nova Southeastern remains just one of two SSC programs to begin conference play a perfect 3-0. Lynn is currently the other 3-0 team following its victory over Eckerd Saturday.
- Through eight matches, the Sharks have tallied at least two goals all but once.
- Constable's club leads the league in margin of victory, outscoring its opponents by an average of 1.37 goals per match. Florida Southern ranks second with a mark of 0.83.
UP NEXT:
NSU will open up a tough, three-game road trip on Wednesday against nearby foe, Barry. The Sharks knocked off the Buccaneers 2-1 in the SSC Tournament semifinal the last time both schools met. For complete coverage of the action, visit the
schedule page on NSUSharks.com.
TWEETS OF THE NIGHT
